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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — hurry
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. land — a country
  7. key — in music
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. land — to come down
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — in sport
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. net — after costs
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. key — the most important part
  23. key — for a lock
  24. nail — for a hammer

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