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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. land — to come down
  4. capital — a city
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cap — of ice
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cap — a lid
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. pass — a permit
  15. capital — money
  16. land — ground
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. rest — a break
  23. rest — what's left
  24. wound — an injury

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