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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bat — the animal
  4. game — a match
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. bank — for money
  9. rule — a law
  10. bank — for money
  11. spring — of water
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. board — to get on
  19. bank — of a river
  20. rule — government
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. spring — the season
  23. board — a committee
  24. mouse — the animal

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