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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 116 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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. land — a country
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. degree — temperature
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. land — to come down
  11. clip — to cut
  12. row — to paddle
  13. pop — soda
  14. row — a line
  15. clip — a video
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. degree — an amount
  19. pop — to visit
  20. degree — from a university
  21. clip — for paper
  22. pop — music
  23. land — ground
  24. staff — employees

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