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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. march — the month
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rest — what's left
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. rest — a break
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. chip — for betting
  10. rest — what's left
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. tube — the underground
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. content — happy
  17. chip — to eat
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. tube — a container
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. land — a country
  22. content — the amount
  23. land — to come down
  24. rush — to hurry

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