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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. game — wild animals
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. stem — to come from
  5. fine — high quality
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a song
  8. object — to protest
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. cap — of ice
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. fine — all right
  16. object — a thing
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cap — a lid
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. cap — a hat
  21. object — an aim
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — a match
  24. track — a path

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