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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 116 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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. pit — in a race
  4. ground — crushed
  5. ground — a position
  6. staff — employees
  7. mine — for digging
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. staff — a stick
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. staff — employees
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. deal — to handle
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. stand — to bear
  18. ground — the earth
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. capital — a city
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. capital — money
  24. pit — a hole

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