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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. ground — crushed
  4. wax — to grow
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — army training
  7. game — wild animals
  8. ground — the earth
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. squash — to crush
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. game — a match
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ground — a position
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. foot — a measure
  21. squash — the sport
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. drill — the tool
  24. squash — the vegetable

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