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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 124 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. race — humankind
  6. pass — a permit
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. club — for dancing
  9. race — a contest
  10. club — for golf
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. land — ground
  14. bulb — for light
  15. club — a group
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — a tin
  19. race — the arms race
  20. can — to be able to
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bulb — for light
  23. spring — a coil
  24. land — to come down

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