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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 116 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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. degree — an amount
  3. deal — to handle
  4. squash — the sport
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. rest — what's left
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a match
  13. current — happening now
  14. degree — from a university
  15. current — electric
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rest — a break
  18. rest — what's left
  19. degree — temperature
  20. squash — to crush
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. current — of water

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