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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. ground — the earth
  3. game — a match
  4. kid — to tease
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. hand — in cards
  7. game — wild animals
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. charge — electricity
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. charge — in control
  15. kid — child
  16. root — of a word
  17. object — an aim
  18. object — a thing
  19. deal — to handle
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. root — of a plant
  23. object — to protest
  24. root — the cause

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