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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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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: fall · perch · fine · snap · game · object · ball · cold

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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 — a match
  3. fine — high quality
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. fall — to drop
  7. cold — not warm
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a great time
  10. object — a thing
  11. fine — all right
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. game — wild animals
  14. object — to protest
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. object — an aim
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. perch — the fish
  19. fall — the season
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. snap — to click
  22. cold — an illness
  23. fall — to drop
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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