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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. key — the most important part
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. chip — for betting
  6. pop — to visit
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. row — to paddle
  11. cold — an illness
  12. chip — to eat
  13. bore — to tire
  14. game — a match
  15. row — a line
  16. key — in music
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. bore — to drill
  21. key — for a lock
  22. pop — soda
  23. game — wild animals
  24. perch — the fish

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