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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. capital — a city
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. net — after costs
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. land — to come down
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. drill — a practice
  13. land — ground
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. capital — money
  17. net — for catching
  18. drill — army training
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. land — a country
  23. rash — a series
  24. drill — the tool

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