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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. charge — electricity
  3. bark — to shout
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. cold — an illness
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. charge — in control
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. land — ground
  17. charge — a price
  18. deal — to handle
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. land — to come down
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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