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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. hand — in cards
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. capital — a city
  5. object — to protest
  6. squash — the sport
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. bulb — for light
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. squash — to crush
  13. bass — low music
  14. game — wild animals
  15. object — a thing
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. bass — the fish
  18. object — an aim
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. game — a match
  21. capital — money
  22. bulb — for light
  23. hand — help
  24. saw — the tool

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