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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. land — a country
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. file — a tool
  6. mate — a friend
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. row — to paddle
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. land — to come down
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. race — humankind
  14. mate — to breed
  15. row — a line
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. land — ground
  20. file — a line of people
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. file — a document
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. mate — a partner

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