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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · game · hand · court · board · race · wake · perch

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. hand — in cards
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. court — for sport
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. race — humankind
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. board — a committee
  12. cue — a hint
  13. race — the arms race
  14. cue — for pool
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cue — a signal
  17. court — of a king
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. game — a match
  20. court — of law
  21. board — to get on
  22. game — wild animals
  23. hand — help
  24. board — a flat piece

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