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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. squash — the sport
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. wind — moving air
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. net — in sport
  7. land — a country
  8. land — to come down
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. net — for catching
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. net — after costs
  13. rule — government
  14. pass — a permit
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — help
  18. rule — a law
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. squash — to crush
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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