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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. rest — a break
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. club — a group
  5. spell — a short time
  6. game — wild animals
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — the sport
  12. spell — letters
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. tube — a container
  16. club — for golf
  17. squash — to crush
  18. club — for dancing
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bark — to shout
  21. tube — the underground
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. spell — magic
  24. tube — in a tire

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