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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. snap — to click
  3. degree — an amount
  4. track — a song
  5. press — newspapers
  6. track — a path
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. degree — from a university
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. game — a match
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. game — wild animals
  15. deal — to handle
  16. squash — the sport
  17. degree — temperature
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. squash — to crush
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. press — to push
  23. press — a publisher
  24. track — to keep track

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