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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: current · land · chip · season · wind · leaves · deal · march

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. march — the month
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. current — happening now
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. current — electric
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. march — the month
  11. wind — moving air
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. chip — to eat
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. land — a country
  17. march — music
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. wind — moving air
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. deal — to handle
  23. current — of water
  24. chip — for betting

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