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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. charge — in control
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. charge — a price
  7. game — a match
  8. game — wild animals
  9. branch — a division
  10. pop — to visit
  11. rule — government
  12. roll — a cake
  13. pit — a hole
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. pop — music
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. roll — a list
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. pit — in a race
  23. pop — soda
  24. charge — electricity

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