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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. land — ground
  3. chip — for betting
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. land — a country
  7. mine — for digging
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. land — to come down
  12. season — in sport
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. mug — to rob
  17. mug — a face
  18. mug — a cup
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. chip — to eat
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — the animal
  23. kick — in football
  24. mine — belonging to me

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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