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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bound — tied together
  4. face — part of the head
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. track — to keep track
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bound — certain
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. track — a song
  14. wake — a trail
  15. shower — rain
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. game — wild animals
  18. face — to confront
  19. bound — obliged
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. spring — a coil
  22. game — a match
  23. face — to point toward
  24. track — a path

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