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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. spell — magic
  3. bear — the animal
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pop — music
  6. drill — army training
  7. bear — the animal
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bound — tied together
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. spell — letters
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bound — certain
  18. game — wild animals
  19. pop — soda
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. game — a match
  22. bark — to shout
  23. drill — the tool
  24. pop — to visit

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