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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — a country
  3. cold — not warm
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. pit — in a race
  6. file — a line of people
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. board — a committee
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. board — to get on
  11. land — to come down
  12. file — a document
  13. pass — a permit
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. pit — a hole
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. file — a tool
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. cold — an illness
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. racket — for tennis

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