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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 116 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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — ground
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. net — for catching
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. club — a group
  8. cold — not warm
  9. net — in sport
  10. drill — army training
  11. cold — an illness
  12. current — electric
  13. net — after costs
  14. current — happening now
  15. current — of water
  16. club — for golf
  17. suit — in cards
  18. drill — a practice
  19. suit — clothes
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. suit — to fit
  22. club — for dancing
  23. land — to come down
  24. bowl — to roll

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