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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. land — a country
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. track — to keep track
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. drill — army training
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. cold — an illness
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. pass — a permit
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. rush — hurry
  16. land — ground
  17. drill — the tool
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. land — to come down
  21. game — a match
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — wild animals
  24. bay — a horse colour

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