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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. file — a line of people
  6. root — of a plant
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — a match
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. root — of a word
  11. rash — hasty
  12. root — the cause
  13. pass — a permit
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. rash — a series
  17. file — a tool
  18. fine — all right
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. file — a document
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — in cards
  24. game — wild animals

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