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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. ball — a dance
  4. charge — a price
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. charge — electricity
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. charge — in control
  13. squash — the sport
  14. land — to come down
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bark — to shout
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. pound — a weight
  20. land — ground
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. land — a country
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. ball — a round shape

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