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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. rash — hasty
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. mine — for digging
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. current — happening now
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a match
  10. charge — in control
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. charge — a price
  13. squash — the sport
  14. current — electric
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. charge — electricity
  18. kid — to tease
  19. squash — to crush
  20. current — of water
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. kid — child
  24. rash — a series

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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