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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. mark — a grade
  5. drill — a practice
  6. ball — a dance
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. game — a match
  9. drill — the tool
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. squash — the sport
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. mark — a trace
  18. snap — to click
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. game — wild animals
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. dip — to sink
  24. drill — army training

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