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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. court — of a king
  3. land — a country
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. plane — a tool
  6. game — wild animals
  7. court — for sport
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. game — a match
  10. saw — the tool
  11. swing — to play on
  12. court — of law
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. land — to come down
  15. saw — the tool
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bat — the animal
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. swing — music
  23. land — ground
  24. bay — a horse colour

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