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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. game — wild animals
  3. pound — a weight
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. file — a tool
  6. spell — a short time
  7. spell — magic
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. spell — letters
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. bound — tied together
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. bound — obliged
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. file — a line of people
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. game — a match
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. bound — certain
  23. file — a document
  24. deal — to handle

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