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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: capital · leaves · bark · saw · bear · rush · mate · game

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bear — the animal
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. mate — a friend
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. capital — money
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bark — to shout
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a match
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. saw — the tool
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. capital — a city
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. mate — a partner
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. mate — to breed
  24. saw — the tool

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