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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. band — a music group
  3. charge — electricity
  4. net — for catching
  5. bark — to shout
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. net — after costs
  11. mate — to breed
  12. charge — a price
  13. prune — to trim
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. charge — in control
  16. mate — a friend
  17. net — in sport
  18. mate — a partner
  19. band — a ring
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. prune — to trim
  24. game — wild animals

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