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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. track — a path
  3. charge — a price
  4. game — wild animals
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bat — the animal
  7. root — of a word
  8. game — a match
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. charge — electricity
  15. track — a song
  16. lie — to recline
  17. root — of a plant
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. track — to keep track
  20. squash — the sport
  21. charge — in control
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. root — the cause
  24. bat — in an idiom

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