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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 120 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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. race — a contest
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — help
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. key — in music
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. race — the arms race
  11. key — for a lock
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — shares
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. race — humankind
  16. kick — in football
  17. season — of the year
  18. game — a match
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. key — the most important part
  23. season — in sport
  24. game — wild animals

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