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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. game — a match
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. wind — moving air
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. object — a thing
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. object — an aim
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. race — the arms race
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bore — to drill
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. object — to protest
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. race — a contest
  20. game — wild animals
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bore — to tire
  24. race — humankind

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