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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. field — for sport
  4. land — ground
  5. board — to get on
  6. tube — a container
  7. tube — the underground
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. stand — to bear
  12. chair — a leader
  13. season — of the year
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. lean — to bend
  17. land — to come down
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. field — farmland
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. season — in sport
  22. field — a subject
  23. board — a committee
  24. lean — thin

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