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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. squash — to crush
  5. march — the month
  6. game — a match
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — a series
  10. bass — low music
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — shares
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. rush — hurry
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. bass — the fish
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. squash — the sport

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