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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. staff — a stick
  3. land — to come down
  4. bank — for money
  5. field — for sport
  6. staff — employees
  7. bank — for money
  8. field — farmland
  9. bulb — for light
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. bank — of a river
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. bulb — for light
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. snap — to click
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. field — a subject
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. land — ground
  24. staff — employees

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