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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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. staff — a stick
  4. capital — a city
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. rest — what's left
  9. snap — to click
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. game — wild animals
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. game — a match
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. staff — employees
  19. rest — a break
  20. land — ground
  21. staff — employees
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. rest — what's left
  24. capital — money

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