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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. race — humankind
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. ball — a dance
  8. chip — for betting
  9. race — the arms race
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. game — wild animals
  13. row — to paddle
  14. chip — to eat
  15. clip — a video
  16. ball — a great time
  17. clip — to cut
  18. race — a contest
  19. row — a line
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. clip — for paper

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