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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 116 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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  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. ball — a dance
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. spell — letters
  4. pound — a weight
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — of water
  7. rash — hasty
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. spell — magic
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. spell — a short time
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. spring — the season
  19. ball — a great time
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rash — a series
  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