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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bark — to shout
  3. rock — music
  4. march — music
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. rash — a series
  8. rock — a stone
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. current — electric
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. march — the month
  13. current — of water
  14. game — wild animals
  15. rest — what's left
  16. march — the month
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. rest — a break
  20. current — happening now
  21. game — a match
  22. rash — hasty
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bark — of a tree

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