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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. last — final
  5. game — a match
  6. mine — for digging
  7. board — to get on
  8. scale — size or range
  9. rock — music
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. board — a committee
  12. face — part of the head
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. last — finally
  15. face — to confront
  16. bore — to tire
  17. last — to go on
  18. rock — a stone
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bore — to drill
  21. scale — in music
  22. game — wild animals
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. face — to point toward

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