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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. can — a tin
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. ground — crushed
  7. can — to be able to
  8. can — a tin
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. ground — the earth
  11. season — of the year
  12. ground — a position
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wind — moving air
  17. saw — the tool
  18. season — in sport
  19. wind — moving air
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. saw — the tool
  22. game — a match
  23. hand — help
  24. hand — in cards

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