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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. lean — to bend
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. game — wild animals
  7. root — of a plant
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. scale — size or range
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. root — of a word
  13. lean — thin
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. can — a tin
  17. scale — in music
  18. can — to be able to
  19. cold — an illness
  20. can — a tin
  21. cold — not warm
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. root — the cause

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