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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. capital — a city
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. press — a publisher
  5. pit — in a race
  6. band — a ring
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. capital — money
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. band — a music group
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. press — to push
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. press — newspapers
  19. game — a match
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. game — wild animals
  22. perch — the fish
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. pit — a hole

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