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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bark — to shout
  3. date — the fruit
  4. bound — obliged
  5. game — a match
  6. bound — certain
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. game — wild animals
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. bound — tied together
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. date — on the calendar

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