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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. fall — to drop
  3. rock — a stone
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. field — farmland
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. field — a subject
  8. rock — music
  9. fall — the season
  10. chip — for betting
  11. game — wild animals
  12. file — a line of people
  13. file — a tool
  14. fall — to drop
  15. chip — to eat
  16. game — a match
  17. field — for sport
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. file — a document
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. rock — to move gently

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