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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 116 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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. squash — the sport
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. rest — a break
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. stand — to bear
  8. field — a subject
  9. rock — a stone
  10. rest — what's left
  11. game — a match
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. root — of a word
  14. rest — what's left
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. squash — to crush
  17. field — for sport
  18. root — of a plant
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. field — farmland
  21. root — the cause
  22. game — wild animals
  23. rock — music
  24. bowl — a football final

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