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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bark — to shout
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — a law
  8. foot — a measure
  9. rule — government
  10. spring — of water
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. ball — a dance
  13. snap — to click
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — for dancing
  16. spring — a coil
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. ball — a great time
  20. game — a match
  21. game — wild animals
  22. club — a group
  23. spring — the season
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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