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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chair · race · pit · land · rush · foot · dip · mine

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. pit — in a race
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. pit — a hole
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. rush — hurry
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. land — ground
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. land — to come down
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — the arms race
  19. race — a contest
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. dip — to sink
  22. mine — for digging
  23. chair — a leader
  24. foot — a measure

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