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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. staff — employees
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. spell — magic
  5. track — to keep track
  6. last — to go on
  7. game — a match
  8. cap — a hat
  9. last — final
  10. track — a song
  11. cap — a lid
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. staff — employees
  14. game — wild animals
  15. board — to get on
  16. staff — a stick
  17. spell — a short time
  18. cap — of ice
  19. spell — letters
  20. board — a committee
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. last — finally
  23. track — a path
  24. board — a flat piece

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