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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. game — a match
  5. rule — a law
  6. lean — thin
  7. rule — government
  8. court — for sport
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. race — humankind
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. race — a contest
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. lean — to bend
  15. net — in sport
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. net — after costs
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — wild animals
  20. net — for catching
  21. court — of a king
  22. race — the arms race
  23. foot — a measure
  24. court — of law

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