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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. pass — a permit
  3. land — a country
  4. bass — low music
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. shower — rain
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. snap — to click
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. net — for catching
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bass — the fish
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. shower — to wash
  17. net — in sport
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. land — ground
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. net — after costs
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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