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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. game — a match
  3. spring — of water
  4. game — wild animals
  5. hand — help
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. spring — a coil
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bound — tied together
  12. spring — the season
  13. cell — a phone
  14. bound — obliged
  15. mug — to rob
  16. hand — in cards
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bound — certain
  19. mug — a face
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. mug — a cup
  24. squash — the vegetable

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