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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spell · press · track · rule · roll · game · fork · bark

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. fork — in a road
  3. track — to keep track
  4. rule — government
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. track — a path
  7. track — a song
  8. press — a publisher
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. roll — a cake
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. spell — magic
  13. game — a match
  14. spell — a short time
  15. rule — a law
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — to shout
  19. game — wild animals
  20. press — newspapers
  21. press — to push
  22. spell — letters
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. roll — a list

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