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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. court — for sport
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. wound — an injury
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. game — wild animals
  14. court — of law
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. kick — in football
  18. game — a match
  19. dip — to sink
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. court — of a king
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. kick — a thrill

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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