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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. squash — the sport
  5. tube — the underground
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. land — to come down
  8. hand — help
  9. rule — government
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rule — a law
  13. squash — to crush
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. wake — a trail
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. tube — a container
  22. dip — to sink
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. land — ground

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