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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. date — the fruit
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. branch — a division
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — for betting
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. bat — the animal
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. game — a match
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. game — wild animals
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. ground — the earth
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. rule — government

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