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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. capital — money
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. hand — help
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. key — in music
  10. key — the most important part
  11. key — for a lock
  12. field — for sport
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. hand — in cards
  15. capital — a city
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. game — a match
  18. field — a subject
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. field — farmland
  23. fan — a supporter
  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