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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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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  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. bark — a dog's sound
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. cap — of ice
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cap — a lid
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. game — a match
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. rule — a law
  10. cap — a hat
  11. vault — a safe
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. bark — to shout
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. rule — government
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. pass — a permit
  21. degree — temperature
  22. degree — from a university
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  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