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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 120 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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wind — moving air
  3. shower — to wash
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. rule — a law
  9. rule — government
  10. wind — moving air
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. game — a match
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. land — to come down
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. shower — rain
  22. land — ground
  23. game — wild animals
  24. nail — on a finger

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