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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. mark — a trace
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bass — low music
  8. bass — the fish
  9. dip — to sink
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. cap — a hat
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. land — ground
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. cap — a lid
  18. spring — of water
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. spring — the season
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. land — to come down
  23. mark — a grade
  24. spring — a coil

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