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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. shower — rain
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cell — a phone
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. chair — a leader
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. shower — to wash
  22. cell — in biology
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. game — a match

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