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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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 — a dog's sound
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. rule — government
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. game — a match
  10. spring — of water
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. pound — a weight
  15. mark — a grade
  16. current — of water
  17. mark — a trace
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — electric
  20. rule — a law
  21. spring — the season
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. bark — to shout
  24. spring — a coil

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