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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. rule — government
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. swing — in golf
  7. rule — a law
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bark — to shout
  12. band — a ring
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. tear — to rip
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. swing — to play on
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — from crying
  24. swing — music

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