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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. land — a country
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. land — ground
  5. sharp — clever
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fall — to drop
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. wound — an injury
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. land — to come down
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. fall — to drop
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. fall — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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