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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. game — wild animals
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. game — a match
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. lean — thin
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. rule — government
  14. lean — to bend
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rule — a law
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. bulb — for light
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. perch — the fish
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. perch — for a bird

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