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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. face — to point toward
  6. land — ground
  7. current — of water
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. current — electric
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. chip — to eat
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. current — happening now
  15. face — to confront
  16. rash — a series
  17. land — a country
  18. chip — for betting
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. pitch — completely
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. face — part of the head

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