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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. shower — rain
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. land — a country
  5. charge — electricity
  6. land — ground
  7. bore — to drill
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — the arms race
  10. shower — to wash
  11. clip — to cut
  12. charge — in control
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. clip — for paper
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. pass — a permit
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bore — to tire
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. charge — a price
  23. clip — a video
  24. race — humankind

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