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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. cap — a lid
  3. tear — from crying
  4. vault — a safe
  5. spell — a short time
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. prune — to trim
  8. kick — in football
  9. prune — to trim
  10. cap — of ice
  11. game — a match
  12. tear — to rip
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. tear — from crying
  15. game — wild animals
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. spell — letters
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. spell — magic
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. cap — a hat

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