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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. shower — to wash
  4. prune — to trim
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. game — a match
  9. object — a thing
  10. object — an aim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. perch — the fish
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. game — wild animals
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. shower — rain
  18. march — music
  19. prune — to trim
  20. object — to protest
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. bay — a horse colour

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