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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  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. sharp — exactly
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. game — wild animals
  5. stem — to come from
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. kid — to tease
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — of law
  14. court — for sport
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — child
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. leaves — of a tree
  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