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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. wind — moving air
  3. squash — to crush
  4. rest — what's left
  5. squash — the sport
  6. board — to get on
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. wind — moving air
  11. board — a committee
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rest — a break
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. bound — tied together
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bound — certain
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bound — obliged
  23. bark — to shout
  24. wind — to turn a key

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