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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 120 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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. board — to get on
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. can — a tin
  5. game — wild animals
  6. board — a committee
  7. can — to be able to
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — humankind
  10. game — a match
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — thin
  14. wind — moving air
  15. race — the arms race
  16. can — a tin
  17. wind — moving air
  18. lean — to rest against

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