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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. kid — to tease
  3. game — a match
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. fine — all right
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. mug — a cup
  9. game — wild animals
  10. cell — a phone
  11. season — of the year
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. mug — a face
  14. prune — to trim
  15. last — final
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. mug — to rob
  18. fine — high quality
  19. last — to go on
  20. kid — child
  21. last — finally
  22. season — in sport
  23. prune — to trim
  24. game — a kind of play

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