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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. game — wild animals
  3. court — for sport
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. court — of law
  8. lie — to recline
  9. chip — to eat
  10. game — a match
  11. last — final
  12. bass — low music
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. last — finally
  15. court — of a king
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. last — to go on
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. chip — for betting
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bass — the fish

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