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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 120 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: lean · land · trunk · kid · content · pitcher · mate · cell

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. land — ground
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. mate — to breed
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. content — the amount
  9. mate — a partner
  10. lean — to bend
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. content — happy
  14. cell — a phone
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. lean — thin
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. mate — a friend
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. kid — to tease
  22. land — to come down
  23. kid — child
  24. cell — in biology

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