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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 116 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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. land — a country
  4. face — part of the head
  5. mark — a trace
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. mark — a grade
  9. wound — an injury
  10. face — to point toward
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. face — to confront
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. bark — to shout
  19. land — ground
  20. file — a line of people
  21. land — to come down
  22. file — a tool
  23. file — a document
  24. pound — to hit hard

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