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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. pass — a permit
  3. track — a path
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. land — to come down
  8. field — farmland
  9. cell — in biology
  10. present — the time now
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. track — to keep track
  14. field — a subject
  15. land — ground
  16. track — a song
  17. cell — a phone
  18. field — for sport
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. present — there
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. present — a gift
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. coach — a trainer

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