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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 124 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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. game — a match
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. chest — of your body
  7. rest — what's left
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. game — wild animals
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. capital — money
  13. chest — of your body
  14. rest — a break
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. foot — a measure
  17. vault — a safe
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. capital — a city
  23. rest — what's left
  24. chest — a box

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