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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. last — to go on
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. cue — for pool
  11. content — happy
  12. last — finally
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. toast — bread
  16. pitch — completely
  17. last — final
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. cue — a signal
  20. cue — a hint
  21. game — a match
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. game — wild animals
  24. toast — the most admired

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