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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — a coil
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. bulb — for light
  6. mate — to breed
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. spring — the season
  11. kid — child
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pound — a weight
  14. roll — a list
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. kid — to tease
  17. rule — government
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. mate — a partner
  20. rule — a law
  21. mate — a friend
  22. saw — the tool
  23. roll — a cake
  24. bulb — for light

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