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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · toast · wake · capital · hide · object · bat · saw

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. saw — the tool
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. capital — money
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. saw — the tool
  11. toast — bread
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. object — an aim
  14. land — to come down
  15. object — to protest
  16. land — a country
  17. bat — the animal
  18. object — a thing
  19. capital — a city
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. land — ground
  24. wake — a trail

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