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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 · rule · hand · spell · march · shower · pound · wave

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. march — the month
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. spell — letters
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. shower — to wash
  9. spell — magic
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. march — the month
  12. shower — rain
  13. rule — a law
  14. spell — a short time
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bark — to shout
  17. march — music
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. hand — help
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. pound — a weight
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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