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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. spell — letters
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. degree — from a university
  5. land — to come down
  6. spell — magic
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. plane — a tool
  9. field — for sport
  10. pass — a permit
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bank — of a river
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. degree — an amount
  17. land — ground
  18. spell — a short time
  19. bank — for money
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. bank — for money
  22. field — a subject
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. field — farmland

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