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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. cap — a lid
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — a country
  7. track — a song
  8. field — for sport
  9. bat — the animal
  10. cap — a hat
  11. track — to keep track
  12. land — ground
  13. field — a subject
  14. chip — for betting
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. cap — of ice
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. chip — to eat
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. field — farmland
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. track — a path
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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