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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. squash — to crush
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. rule — a law
  10. row — to paddle
  11. cap — a hat
  12. saw — the tool
  13. cap — a lid
  14. row — a line
  15. saw — the tool
  16. game — wild animals
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. squash — the sport
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. cap — of ice
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. snap — to click
  24. rule — government

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