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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. face — to confront
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. face — to point toward
  8. deal — to handle
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. face — part of the head
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. kid — child
  14. bound — tied together
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. present — there
  17. bound — obliged
  18. present — a gift
  19. present — the time now
  20. bound — certain
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bark — to shout
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. racket — for tennis

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