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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 120 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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. ground — crushed
  3. mate — a friend
  4. mate — to breed
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. rash — a series
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. ground — a position
  11. bark — to shout
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. mate — a partner
  14. prune — to trim
  15. rush — hurry
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. prune — to trim
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. ground — the earth
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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