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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 116 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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. file — a tool
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. fall — to drop
  8. capital — a city
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fall — to drop
  11. file — a document
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. season — of the year
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. land — a country
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. season — in sport
  18. capital — money
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. file — a line of people
  21. fall — the season
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. land — ground
  24. mine — an explosive

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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