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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. kick — in football
  5. game — a match
  6. hand — help
  7. pit — in a race
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rock — a stone
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. game — wild animals
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. club — for dancing
  18. drill — the tool
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. club — a group
  21. rock — music
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — army training
  24. club — for golf

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