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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 120 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. wax — to grow
  5. ground — crushed
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. spring — of water
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. lean — to bend
  10. spring — a coil
  11. rule — government
  12. stock — goods
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a match
  15. lean — thin
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. ground — the earth
  18. stock — shares
  19. rule — a law
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. spring — the season
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. ground — a position
  24. stock — a soup base

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