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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 116 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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. pop — to visit
  3. game — wild animals
  4. spell — letters
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. club — for golf
  8. pop — music
  9. spell — magic
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. race — humankind
  12. spell — a short time
  13. land — to come down
  14. race — the arms race
  15. land — ground
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. pound — a weight
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — a group
  20. kick — in football
  21. race — a contest
  22. game — a match
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. pop — soda

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