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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 got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. bear — the animal
  4. field — a subject
  5. rule — government
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. field — farmland
  10. cold — not warm
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — a country
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a match
  15. fine — high quality
  16. land — ground
  17. bear — the animal
  18. rule — a law
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. field — for sport
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. fine — all right
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. nail — on a finger

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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