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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. kid — to tease
  3. spring — a coil
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. land — a country
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. game — a match
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. key — for a lock
  13. land — ground
  14. spring — the season
  15. land — to come down
  16. kid — child
  17. spring — of water
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. key — in music
  20. game — wild animals
  21. pound — a weight
  22. deal — to handle
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. key — the most important part

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