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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. game — a match
  4. hand — in cards
  5. bulb — for light
  6. last — finally
  7. prune — to trim
  8. last — to go on
  9. prune — to trim
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. saw — the tool
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — completely
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. last — final
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. bulb — for light
  21. hand — help
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. game — wild animals
  24. saw — the tool

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