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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 120 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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. current — happening now
  3. current — electric
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. game — a match
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. branch — a division
  8. spring — of water
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. game — wild animals
  12. kid — child
  13. current — of water
  14. fine — all right
  15. land — a country
  16. mark — a trace
  17. kid — to tease
  18. spring — the season
  19. fine — high quality
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. mark — a grade
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. spring — a coil

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