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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. staff — a stick
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a match
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. sharp — clever
  7. land — ground
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — hasty
  10. ground — the earth
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — for digging
  14. staff — employees
  15. ground — a position
  16. land — a country
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. land — to come down
  19. staff — employees
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. ground — crushed
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. sharp — exactly

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