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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rule — a law
  3. ground — the earth
  4. land — a country
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — moving air
  8. ground — a position
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. fork — in a road
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. squash — to crush
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. pitch — completely
  15. land — ground
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. rule — government
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. squash — the sport
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. ground — crushed

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