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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. degree — from a university
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. march — the month
  6. game — a match
  7. can — to be able to
  8. race — a contest
  9. march — music
  10. cue — for pool
  11. march — the month
  12. can — a tin
  13. cue — a hint
  14. face — part of the head
  15. race — humankind
  16. face — to confront
  17. degree — temperature
  18. can — a tin
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. degree — an amount
  22. face — to point toward
  23. cue — a signal
  24. race — the arms race

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