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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. land — ground
  3. game — wild animals
  4. fine — all right
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. march — the month
  7. march — music
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. fine — high quality
  14. game — a match
  15. rest — what's left
  16. land — a country
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. rest — a break
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. land — to come down
  22. rash — hasty
  23. rest — what's left
  24. march — the month

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