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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 120 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. tube — a container
  3. mate — to breed
  4. vault — a safe
  5. swing — to play on
  6. board — a committee
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. mate — a friend
  11. march — music
  12. mate — a partner
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. game — a match
  17. march — the month
  18. tube — the underground
  19. swing — in golf
  20. board — to get on
  21. game — wild animals
  22. march — the month
  23. hand — help
  24. swing — music

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