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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — government
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. spring — of water
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — size or range
  10. press — to push
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. scale — in music
  13. rule — a law
  14. kid — to tease
  15. spring — the season
  16. kid — child
  17. bark — to shout
  18. press — newspapers
  19. bound — tied together
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bound — obliged
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. bound — certain
  24. press — a publisher

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