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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. land — a country
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rule — government
  7. net — after costs
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. net — for catching
  10. wake — a trail
  11. track — a path
  12. bass — low music
  13. track — to keep track
  14. bass — the fish
  15. land — ground
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. track — a song
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. net — in sport
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. land — to come down
  24. mine — for digging

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