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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. face — to point toward
  3. firm — decided
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. face — part of the head
  6. firm — steady
  7. ball — a dance
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. lean — to bend
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. firm — a company
  16. chip — to eat
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. game — a match
  19. row — a line
  20. chip — for betting
  21. game — wild animals
  22. lean — thin
  23. bat — the animal
  24. face — to confront

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