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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. game — a match
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. rule — government
  9. bark — to shout
  10. rule — a law
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. track — a path
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. date — the fruit
  15. content — happy
  16. game — wild animals
  17. content — the amount
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bear — the animal
  21. track — to keep track
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. track — a song
  24. game — a kind of play

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