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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. prune — to trim
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. race — the arms race
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. race — humankind
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. lie — to recline
  16. wake — a trail
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. race — a contest
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for baseball

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