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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. chip — for betting
  4. land — ground
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. club — a group
  7. rash — a series
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. land — a country
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. rash — hasty
  13. snap — to click
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. kick — in football
  16. land — to come down
  17. net — for catching
  18. club — for golf
  19. chip — to eat
  20. net — in sport
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. club — for dancing
  24. chip — in a computer

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