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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — to come down
  3. chair — a leader
  4. land — ground
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. sharp — clever
  9. last — final
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. content — happy
  13. deal — to handle
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. last — to go on
  19. last — finally
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. content — the amount
  23. rush — hurry
  24. rush — a thrill

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