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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. ball — a dance
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. drill — the tool
  7. hand — in cards
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. drill — a practice
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. hand — help
  13. shower — to wash
  14. drill — army training
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. charge — electricity
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. game — a match
  20. shower — rain
  21. deal — to handle
  22. charge — in control
  23. game — wild animals
  24. ball — a great time

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