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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: mine · cabinet · rule · kid · game · mouse · race · spell

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. spell — letters
  3. race — humankind
  4. spell — magic
  5. rule — government
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — to tease
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — wild animals
  12. spell — a short time
  13. rule — a law
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. kid — child
  17. race — the arms race
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. race — a contest
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. game — a match
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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