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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. band — a ring
  3. charge — electricity
  4. band — a music group
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. charge — in control
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. last — finally
  10. face — part of the head
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. bark — to shout
  13. last — to go on
  14. game — a match
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. charge — a price
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. face — to point toward
  19. game — wild animals
  20. chip — to eat
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. face — to confront
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. chip — for betting

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