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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. last — finally
  7. content — happy
  8. ball — a great time
  9. content — the amount
  10. game — a match
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. pit — a hole
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. ball — a dance
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. last — to go on
  17. shower — rain
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — a stick
  20. pit — in a race
  21. last — final
  22. game — wild animals
  23. shower — to wash
  24. staff — employees

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