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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — wild animals
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. band — a music group
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. chip — to eat
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. march — the month
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. march — music
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. march — the month
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. object — a thing
  20. chip — for betting
  21. plane — a tool
  22. mine — for digging
  23. object — an aim
  24. object — to protest

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