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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. mark — a trace
  5. land — a country
  6. land — to come down
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. club — for golf
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. club — a group
  11. cold — not warm
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. kick — in football
  14. plane — a tool
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. mark — a grade
  20. land — ground
  21. toast — bread
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. club — for dancing
  24. cold — an illness

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com