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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 116 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. wound — an injury
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. game — a match
  10. march — music
  11. dip — to sink
  12. rush — hurry
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. wound — an injury
  15. march — the month
  16. game — wild animals
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. march — the month
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. pitcher — a jug

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