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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. rash — a series
  3. ball — a dance
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. game — a match
  6. fine — all right
  7. rash — hasty
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. fine — high quality
  10. land — a country
  11. degree — temperature
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. game — wild animals
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. degree — an amount
  17. hand — help
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. land — to come down
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. ball — a great time
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. land — ground
  24. degree — from a university

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