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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. row — a line
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — ground
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. capital — money
  9. row — to paddle
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. prune — to trim
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. current — happening now
  14. capital — a city
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. current — of water
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. current — electric
  22. prune — to trim
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. fork — in a road

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