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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. land — a country
  3. row — a line
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. band — a music group
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. chip — to eat
  9. spell — magic
  10. land — to come down
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. season — in sport
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. fine — high quality
  16. chip — for betting
  17. row — to paddle
  18. fine — all right
  19. stand — to bear
  20. season — of the year
  21. spell — letters
  22. land — ground
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. spell — a short time

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