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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — a match
  3. bulb — for light
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. chip — to eat
  6. game — wild animals
  7. present — there
  8. last — final
  9. file — a document
  10. present — the time now
  11. file — a tool
  12. race — humankind
  13. file — a line of people
  14. race — the arms race
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. last — finally
  17. bulb — for light
  18. row — a line
  19. last — to go on
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. present — a gift
  22. chip — for betting
  23. row — to paddle
  24. race — a contest

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