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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. wound — an injury
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mug — to rob
  7. bat — the animal
  8. scale — in music
  9. mug — a face
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. mug — a cup
  16. game — wild animals
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. game — a match
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. mine — for digging
  21. fork — in a road
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wound — an injury

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