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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bark — to shout
  4. mate — a friend
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. mate — to breed
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. spring — the season
  11. current — happening now
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. rule — government
  14. current — electric
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. ball — a great time
  18. rule — a law
  19. spring — a coil
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. ball — a dance
  22. mate — a partner
  23. spring — of water
  24. current — of water

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