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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bore — to tire
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. game — a match
  8. bore — to drill
  9. current — happening now
  10. wind — moving air
  11. current — of water
  12. wax — to grow
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. spring — of water
  16. spring — a coil
  17. current — electric
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — the season
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. game — wild animals
  24. cabinet — ministers

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