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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. object — a thing
  3. cue — a signal
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cue — a hint
  8. game — a match
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. march — the month
  11. game — wild animals
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cue — for pool
  15. hand — in cards
  16. object — to protest
  17. cap — of ice
  18. mine — for digging
  19. saw — the tool
  20. cap — a hat
  21. saw — the tool
  22. cap — a lid
  23. march — music
  24. object — an aim

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