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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — to come down
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. fine — high quality
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. hand — help
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — to confront
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. net — in sport
  13. fine — all right
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. mine — for digging
  16. net — for catching
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. face — part of the head
  19. land — ground
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. pass — a permit
  23. net — after costs
  24. mine — belonging to me

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