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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. land — ground
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. scale — size or range
  5. land — to come down
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. game — a match
  8. key — in music
  9. wind — moving air
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cell — in biology
  13. key — for a lock
  14. game — wild animals
  15. scale — in music
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. land — a country
  19. object — an aim
  20. object — to protest
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cell — a phone
  23. object — a thing
  24. key — the most important part

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