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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. ball — a great time
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. bank — of a river
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. cold — an illness
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — to push
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. ball — a dance
  17. game — a match
  18. press — newspapers
  19. cold — not warm
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. bank — for money
  22. game — wild animals
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. ball — a round shape

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