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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. rule — government
  3. cold — not warm
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. bark — to shout
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. mark — a trace
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mark — a grade
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. cold — an illness
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. stock — goods
  21. rule — a law
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. stock — shares
  24. bark — of a tree

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