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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. tear — from crying
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. tear — to rip
  8. court — of law
  9. squash — the sport
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. land — ground
  12. tear — from crying
  13. face — to confront
  14. squash — to crush
  15. court — of a king
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. court — for sport
  20. land — to come down
  21. face — to point toward
  22. face — part of the head
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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