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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. ball — a dance
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. net — in sport
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. game — a match
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. ball — a great time
  10. game — wild animals
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. season — of the year
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. net — for catching
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. season — in sport
  18. fine — all right
  19. fine — high quality
  20. deal — to handle
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. net — after costs

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