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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 116 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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. game — a match
  4. craft — boats
  5. kid — child
  6. drill — army training
  7. present — the time now
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. craft — a skill
  10. present — there
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. kid — to tease
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. present — a gift
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. drill — the tool
  17. game — wild animals
  18. drill — a practice

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