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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. land — a country
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. game — a match
  7. pass — a permit
  8. content — happy
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. content — the amount
  13. game — wild animals
  14. chip — to eat
  15. land — to come down
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. chip — for betting
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. land — ground
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. game — a kind of play

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