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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. present — a gift
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bear — the animal
  5. tear — from crying
  6. game — a match
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rule — government
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. rule — a law
  11. present — there
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. tear — to rip
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. bound — certain
  19. pound — a weight
  20. saw — the tool
  21. present — the time now
  22. bound — obliged
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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