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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. scale — in music
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. game — wild animals
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. object — a thing
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. rash — hasty
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. object — an aim
  17. band — a ring
  18. game — a match
  19. band — a music group
  20. scale — size or range
  21. object — to protest
  22. rash — a series
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — the animal

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