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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. land — to come down
  5. spring — the season
  6. club — for golf
  7. spring — a coil
  8. pound — a weight
  9. game — a match
  10. club — for dancing
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. club — a group
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. land — ground
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. spring — of water
  21. pitch — completely
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. game — wild animals
  24. ruler — for measuring

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