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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 124 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. season — of the year
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — to play on
  6. season — in sport
  7. net — after costs
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. pop — music
  11. swing — music
  12. sharp — clever
  13. net — for catching
  14. rest — a break
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wake — a trail
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pop — to visit
  20. net — in sport
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. pop — soda
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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