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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. wind — moving air
  3. suit — clothes
  4. ground — the earth
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. root — of a word
  7. cap — of ice
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cue — a hint
  10. ground — crushed
  11. root — the cause
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pop — music
  14. root — of a plant
  15. cap — a lid
  16. pop — to visit
  17. ground — a position
  18. suit — to fit
  19. pop — soda
  20. cue — a signal
  21. game — wild animals
  22. cue — for pool
  23. suit — in cards
  24. cap — a hat

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