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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. pass — a permit
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — an injury
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. game — a match
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mine — for digging
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. game — wild animals
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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