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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. game — wild animals
  4. hand — in cards
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. face — to point toward
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. stand — to bear
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. game — a match
  11. face — to confront
  12. bat — the animal
  13. season — of the year
  14. face — part of the head
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. chip — to eat
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. chip — for betting
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. season — in sport
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. season — to add flavour

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