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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bark · game · jam · lean · hide · scale · land · roll

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. lean — thin
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. land — ground
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. game — wild animals
  7. roll — a cake
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. lean — to bend
  10. roll — a list
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. land — a country
  13. land — to come down
  14. scale — size or range
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. scale — in music
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. game — a match

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