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

Word bank: ruler · club · hand · mine · game · bear · pit · snap

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. game — a match
  3. pit — a hole
  4. bear — the animal
  5. club — a group
  6. club — for golf
  7. hand — in cards
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. hand — help
  13. club — for dancing
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. bear — the animal
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. game — wild animals
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. pit — in a race
  24. snap — to click

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