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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. pop — to visit
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. present — a gift
  5. track — to keep track
  6. mate — a friend
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. bark — to shout
  9. pop — music
  10. present — there
  11. row — a line
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. game — a match
  14. game — wild animals
  15. mate — a partner
  16. track — a song
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. present — the time now
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. mate — to breed
  23. track — a path
  24. pop — soda

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