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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 124 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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. dip — to sink
  4. present — there
  5. can — a tin
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. file — a document
  8. file — a line of people
  9. present — the time now
  10. march — music
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. march — the month
  13. ground — a position
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. fork — in a road
  16. can — a tin
  17. ground — crushed
  18. present — a gift
  19. game — a match
  20. march — the month
  21. game — wild animals
  22. file — a tool
  23. can — to be able to
  24. ground — the earth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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