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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. race — humankind
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. land — ground
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bore — to drill
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. rush — hurry
  13. shower — rain
  14. race — a contest
  15. bore — to tire
  16. race — the arms race
  17. pop — music
  18. fine — all right
  19. pop — soda
  20. fine — high quality
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. land — to come down
  23. mine — for digging
  24. pop — to visit

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