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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. rash — a series
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — a break
  6. rush — hurry
  7. fine — all right
  8. land — to come down
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. land — ground
  12. rash — hasty
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. row — to paddle
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. stock — goods
  17. fine — high quality
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. row — a line
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. rest — what's left
  24. stock — shares

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