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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. season — in sport
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. track — to keep track
  5. bore — to tire
  6. land — to come down
  7. track — a song
  8. key — the most important part
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. track — a path
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. season — of the year
  13. land — ground
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. stand — to bear
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. key — for a lock
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. key — in music
  24. deal — to handle

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