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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. pitch — completely
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. cell — in biology
  7. game — wild animals
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. cap — of ice
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. cap — a hat
  13. fine — high quality
  14. fine — all right
  15. cell — a phone
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. rash — hasty
  20. cap — a lid
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. rash — a series
  23. stem — to come from
  24. game — a match

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