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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 120 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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. bear — the animal
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. row — a line
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. clip — to cut
  11. firm — steady
  12. firm — decided
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. land — to come down
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. bear — the animal
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. field — farmland
  21. land — ground
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. firm — a company

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