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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. roll — a list
  3. cell — a phone
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. swing — in golf
  6. game — wild animals
  7. net — in sport
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. toast — bread
  11. game — a match
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. net — after costs
  14. content — happy
  15. pop — soda
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. pop — music
  19. net — for catching
  20. swing — to play on
  21. cell — in biology
  22. swing — music
  23. pop — to visit
  24. roll — a cake

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