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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. face — part of the head
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. face — to point toward
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. game — a match
  12. perch — the fish
  13. rule — government
  14. saw — the tool
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. rule — a law
  17. wound — an injury
  18. root — the cause
  19. saw — the tool
  20. root — of a word
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. root — of a plant
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. face — to confront

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