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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 120 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. key — in music
  7. game — wild animals
  8. branch — a division
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. spell — letters
  12. squash — to crush
  13. rest — a break
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — hasty
  16. key — the most important part
  17. rest — what's left
  18. key — for a lock
  19. spell — a short time
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. spell — magic
  22. rest — what's left
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. game — a match

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