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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mine · rock · kid · rest · cabinet · game

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — a stone
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. kid — child
  5. rest — what's left
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. game — wild animals
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. mine — for digging
  14. kid — to tease
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. game — a match
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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