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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. land — to come down
  3. game — wild animals
  4. squash — the sport
  5. squash — to crush
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fine — all right
  13. land — a country
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. bat — the animal
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. land — ground
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. tear — to rip
  22. fine — high quality
  23. tear — from crying
  24. game — a match

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