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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. land — to come down
  4. march — the month
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. march — the month
  9. can — a tin
  10. net — after costs
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. net — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. can — a tin
  16. wind — moving air
  17. can — to be able to
  18. rash — hasty
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. land — a country
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. rash — a series
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. march — music

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