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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. spell — letters
  3. rash — hasty
  4. bank — for money
  5. file — a document
  6. chair — a leader
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bank — for money
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. file — a tool
  12. game — a match
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. spell — a short time
  15. game — wild animals
  16. band — a ring
  17. bank — of a river
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. file — a line of people
  21. rash — a series
  22. band — a music group
  23. rush — hurry
  24. spell — magic

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