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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. snap — to click
  3. root — the cause
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — humankind
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. wax — to grow
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. game — wild animals
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. game — a match
  17. root — of a word
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. stand — to bear
  20. rock — music
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. root — of a plant
  24. race — the arms race

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