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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: leaves · land · bat · foot · tube · rule · chip · wake

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. land — to come down
  3. chip — for betting
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. bat — the animal
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. chip — to eat
  10. foot — a measure
  11. wake — a trail
  12. land — ground
  13. tube — a container
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. tube — the underground
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. rule — a law
  20. rule — government
  21. land — a country
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — in an idiom

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