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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. game — a match
  3. wind — moving air
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. cap — a lid
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. chip — to eat
  8. land — to come down
  9. cap — of ice
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. mate — a partner
  13. game — wild animals
  14. pound — a weight
  15. mate — a friend
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. chip — for betting
  19. cap — a hat
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. pound — to hit hard

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