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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. file — a tool
  3. game — wild animals
  4. roll — a cake
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. file — a line of people
  7. board — to get on
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — the sport
  10. game — a match
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. content — the amount
  13. squash — to crush
  14. race — the arms race
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. roll — a list
  17. race — humankind
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. file — a document
  21. board — a committee
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. content — happy
  24. game — a kind of play

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