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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 124 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: ground · rule · ball · roll · firm · tube · game · lash

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. game — wild animals
  4. firm — steady
  5. rule — a law
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — crushed
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. roll — a cake
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. firm — decided
  12. ground — the earth
  13. roll — a list
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. tube — the underground
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. ball — a great time
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. game — a match
  21. ball — a dance
  22. firm — a company
  23. rule — government
  24. tube — a container

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