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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — a box
  4. land — a country
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. mark — a grade
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. mark — a trace
  15. land — ground
  16. chest — of your body
  17. land — to come down
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — a law
  24. drill — the tool

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