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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 116 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 has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. spell — a short time
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. spell — letters
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. spell — magic
  12. cold — an illness
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. cold — not warm
  15. lie — to recline
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. land — to come down
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. last — final
  20. chip — to eat
  21. land — a country
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. land — ground

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