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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — a match
  3. spell — magic
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. capital — a city
  6. chip — for betting
  7. game — wild animals
  8. swing — in golf
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. swing — music
  11. spell — letters
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. lean — thin
  15. chip — to eat
  16. spell — a short time
  17. lean — to bend
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. rash — hasty
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. rash — a series
  22. capital — money
  23. swing — to play on
  24. lean — to rest against

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