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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 120 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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. chip — for betting
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. key — for a lock
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wound — an injury
  7. key — the most important part
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. key — in music
  10. pop — music
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bear — the animal
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. squash — the sport
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. pop — soda
  21. squash — to crush
  22. chip — to eat
  23. game — a match
  24. pop — to visit

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