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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. present — the time now
  4. game — wild animals
  5. bank — for money
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. present — there
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. saw — the tool
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. spring — a coil
  12. present — a gift
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bank — for money
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. spring — of water
  17. game — a match
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. saw — the tool
  20. spring — the season
  21. hand — help
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. bank — of a river

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