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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. root — of a plant
  4. wind — moving air
  5. game — wild animals
  6. kid — to tease
  7. root — the cause
  8. club — for dancing
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. club — for golf
  12. tube — a container
  13. root — of a word
  14. wake — a trail
  15. date — the fruit
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. tube — the underground
  18. club — a group
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. game — a match
  23. wind — moving air
  24. kid — child

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