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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. land — ground
  3. last — finally
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. last — final
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. roll — a list
  8. land — a country
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. mine — for digging
  11. chip — for betting
  12. file — a document
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. file — a line of people
  15. last — to go on
  16. chip — to eat
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — in sport
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. roll — a cake
  24. land — to come down

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