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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: cabinet · mine · bore · land · bat · fine · plane · rash

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fine — high quality
  3. bore — to tire
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. land — a country
  9. plane — a tool
  10. mine — for digging
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. land — to come down
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. rash — a series
  23. fine — all right
  24. land — ground

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