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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. game — wild animals
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. file — a document
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. net — in sport
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pit — a hole
  11. file — a tool
  12. net — after costs
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. file — a line of people
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. pit — in a race
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. game — a match
  20. fork — in a road
  21. net — for catching
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. cabinet — ministers

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