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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. wound — an injury
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bulb — for light
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. game — a match
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. game — wild animals
  15. vault — a safe
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bulb — for light
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in biology
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. bulb — of a plant

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