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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 120 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. mug — a face
  3. spring — the season
  4. mug — to rob
  5. chair — a leader
  6. rule — government
  7. spring — a coil
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. can — to be able to
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. bark — to shout
  16. hand — in cards
  17. ball — a dance
  18. can — a tin
  19. spring — of water
  20. rule — a law
  21. can — a tin
  22. mug — a cup
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. rule — to rule out

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