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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. bound — obliged
  5. rush — hurry
  6. clip — for paper
  7. court — of law
  8. bass — low music
  9. mate — to breed
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. court — of a king
  13. game — a match
  14. mate — a friend
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. clip — a video
  17. pop — to visit
  18. pop — music
  19. game — wild animals
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bound — tied together
  22. court — for sport
  23. pop — soda
  24. bound — certain

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