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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 120 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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — to come down
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. race — a contest
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. march — the month
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. land — ground
  11. hand — in cards
  12. tube — the underground
  13. race — humankind
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. hand — help
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. march — the month
  19. tube — a container
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. race — the arms race
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. march — music

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