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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. spring — a coil
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. game — wild animals
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bark — to shout
  9. sharp — clever
  10. band — a ring
  11. spring — the season
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. wind — moving air
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cue — a signal
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. spring — of water
  24. band — a music group

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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