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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. spell — a short time
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. game — a match
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spell — magic
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. spell — letters
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. game — wild animals
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. stock — goods
  23. stock — shares
  24. rush — hurry

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