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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 120 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — for sport
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. staff — employees
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. chip — to eat
  11. staff — employees
  12. field — a subject
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. net — for catching
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. mine — for digging
  17. chip — for betting
  18. net — after costs
  19. wind — moving air
  20. net — in sport
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — a law
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. staff — a stick

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