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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. spell — letters
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. press — newspapers
  7. press — to push
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. spell — a short time
  10. hand — in cards
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. land — to come down
  13. hand — help
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. press — a publisher
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. land — a country
  23. land — ground
  24. spell — magic

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