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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. pit — a hole
  3. fine — high quality
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. suit — in cards
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. file — a line of people
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. land — to come down
  15. land — ground
  16. fine — all right
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. row — a line
  20. suit — to fit
  21. pit — in a race
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. row — to paddle
  24. suit — clothes

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