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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — a series
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — hurry
  9. season — in sport
  10. season — of the year
  11. last — final
  12. charge — a price
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. land — to come down
  17. last — to go on
  18. charge — in control
  19. last — finally
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bark — to shout
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. land — ground
  24. charge — electricity

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