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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rock — a stone
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. cold — not warm
  8. craft — a skill
  9. rock — music
  10. game — wild animals
  11. cold — an illness
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. land — to come down
  14. game — a match
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. land — ground

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