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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. capital — money
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. bark — to shout
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. craft — a skill
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. craft — boats
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. rule — a law
  17. capital — a city
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. rule — government
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. perch — the fish
  24. game — wild animals

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