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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. game — a match
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. ground — crushed
  6. wound — an injury
  7. club — for dancing
  8. last — final
  9. last — finally
  10. club — for golf
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. ground — the earth
  17. last — to go on
  18. game — wild animals
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ground — a position
  21. wound — an injury
  22. club — a group
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. cabinet — ministers

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