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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. land — ground
  3. land — to come down
  4. lie — to recline
  5. date — the fruit
  6. stock — shares
  7. rest — what's left
  8. game — a match
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bound — obliged
  12. game — wild animals
  13. rest — what's left
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. prune — to trim
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. stock — goods
  18. bound — certain
  19. bound — tied together
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. land — a country
  22. rest — a break
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. prune — the fruit

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