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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. game — a match
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. roll — a cake
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. band — a ring
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. roll — a list
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. band — a music group
  16. land — ground
  17. land — a country
  18. last — final
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. land — to come down
  24. game — wild animals

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