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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. land — a country
  3. track — a path
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bear — the animal
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. hand — help
  9. track — a song
  10. pitch — completely
  11. bear — the animal
  12. track — to keep track
  13. land — ground
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. fine — all right
  16. fine — high quality
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. game — a match
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. land — to come down

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