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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 116 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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bore — to tire
  12. ball — a dance
  13. game — a match
  14. bore — to drill
  15. ball — a great time
  16. rush — hurry
  17. ground — crushed
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. plane — a tool
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. ground — a position
  22. wake — a trail
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ball — a round shape

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