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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 116 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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  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. bank — for money
  2. land — a country
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. chip — for betting
  5. last — final
  6. land — ground
  7. bank — of a river
  8. drill — army training
  9. bound — obliged
  10. last — finally
  11. chip — to eat
  12. bound — certain
  13. deal — to handle
  14. bank — for money
  15. bound — tied together
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. land — to come down
  18. last — to go on
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. drill — a practice
  23. cabinet — ministers
  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