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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 116 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. land — a country
  4. rush — hurry
  5. scale — in music
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. rock — music
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. wind — moving air
  13. land — to come down
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. scale — size or range
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. ground — the earth
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. ground — a position
  22. ground — crushed
  23. rock — a stone
  24. land — ground

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