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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. chip — to eat
  3. land — to come down
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. cue — for pool
  6. roll — a list
  7. cue — a signal
  8. land — a country
  9. roll — a cake
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. net — in sport
  13. charge — in control
  14. chip — for betting
  15. net — after costs
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cue — a hint
  19. charge — electricity
  20. charge — a price
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. net — for catching

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