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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. rock — music
  4. saw — the tool
  5. chair — a leader
  6. rock — a stone
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. race — humankind
  10. race — a contest
  11. squash — to crush
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. game — wild animals
  15. march — the month
  16. saw — the tool
  17. squash — the sport
  18. march — music
  19. race — the arms race
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. march — the month
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. game — a match

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