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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. chip — to eat
  3. shower — rain
  4. stock — shares
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. land — to come down
  7. land — ground
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. stock — goods
  10. chip — for betting
  11. cue — a signal
  12. shower — to wash
  13. wind — moving air
  14. cue — a hint
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. plane — a tool
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cue — for pool

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