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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. fall — to drop
  3. court — of law
  4. game — a match
  5. court — for sport
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. game — wild animals
  9. ground — crushed
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. tube — the underground
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. court — of a king
  14. tube — a container
  15. cap — of ice
  16. fall — the season
  17. rule — a law
  18. fall — to drop
  19. cap — a hat
  20. can — a tin
  21. rule — government
  22. can — to be able to
  23. cap — a lid
  24. can — a tin

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