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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. land — a country
  4. charge — electricity
  5. land — to come down
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. net — after costs
  9. charge — in control
  10. lean — thin
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. lean — to bend
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. net — in sport
  15. game — wild animals
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. game — a match
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. land — ground
  20. net — for catching
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. tube — the underground
  24. charge — a price

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