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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. chair — a leader
  8. charge — electricity
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. rash — hasty
  12. dip — to sink
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. kid — to tease
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. charge — in control
  18. kid — child
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. fork — in a road
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. charge — a price
  23. rash — a series
  24. fork — to eat with

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