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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. race — a contest
  6. content — the amount
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. rock — a stone
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. hand — in cards
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. race — the arms race
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. land — to come down
  18. race — humankind
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. land — ground
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. content — happy
  23. hand — help
  24. rock — music

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