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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 116 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 am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. land — a country
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. land — ground
  6. squash — the sport
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. sharp — clever
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. cold — an illness
  13. pass — a permit
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — in biology
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. land — to come down
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cell — a phone
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. squash — to crush
  23. band — a ring
  24. cold — not warm

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