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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: cue · hand · march · current · game · charge · squash · bat

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cue — a hint
  4. game — a match
  5. squash — to crush
  6. current — electric
  7. march — the month
  8. charge — in control
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. hand — help
  11. cue — for pool
  12. march — music
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. current — of water
  15. charge — a price
  16. charge — electricity
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. cue — a signal
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. hand — in cards
  22. current — happening now
  23. bat — the animal
  24. march — the month

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