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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. fall — to drop
  3. club — for golf
  4. kid — to tease
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a plant
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. club — for dancing
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. land — to come down
  12. deal — to handle
  13. fall — the season
  14. board — to get on
  15. clip — a video
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. root — of a word
  18. kid — child
  19. club — a group
  20. fall — to drop
  21. board — a committee
  22. land — ground
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. deal — a big deal

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