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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. game — a match
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. content — happy
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. game — wild animals
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. rule — a law
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. bark — to shout
  14. season — of the year
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pound — a weight
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. content — the amount
  20. rule — government
  21. vault — a safe
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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