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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: rush · bear · mine · game · rock · jam · cold · land

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. bear — the animal
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. rock — music
  8. rush — hurry
  9. land — ground
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. land — a country
  12. rock — a stone
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. game — wild animals
  16. mine — for digging
  17. bear — the animal
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cold — not warm
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. cold — an illness

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