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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. land — a country
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. land — ground
  9. scale — in music
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. land — to come down
  12. kid — to tease
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. mine — for digging
  17. scale — size or range
  18. branch — a division
  19. dip — to sink
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. kid — child

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