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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — ground
  3. land — to come down
  4. ball — a great time
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. mate — a partner
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. kid — to tease
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. kid — child
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — music
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. mate — to breed
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. ball — a dance
  21. season — in sport
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. season — of the year
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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