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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. cap — a lid
  4. land — to come down
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. cap — of ice
  7. drill — a practice
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — for golf
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. drill — army training
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. cap — a hat
  15. drill — the tool
  16. club — a group
  17. fall — to drop
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. fall — to drop
  20. squash — the sport
  21. land — ground
  22. squash — to crush
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fall — the season

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