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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — a match
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cue — a hint
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. rest — what's left
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. cue — a signal
  14. can — a tin
  15. rest — a break
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. can — to be able to
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. can — a tin
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bowl — a football final

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