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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 116 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. net — after costs
  3. staff — a stick
  4. can — to be able to
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. can — a tin
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. land — to come down
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. rule — government
  12. land — a country
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. can — a tin
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — employees
  23. fork — in a road
  24. rule — a law

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