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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. lean — to bend
  4. game — a match
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. drill — a practice
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. degree — temperature
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. lean — thin
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. drill — the tool
  17. degree — an amount
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. drill — army training
  20. game — wild animals
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. degree — from a university
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. fan — a supporter

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