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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 116 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: object · lie · bark · ball · game · spell · prune · mate

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. mate — a partner
  3. game — a match
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. spell — a short time
  7. spell — letters
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a dance
  10. object — a thing
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. spell — magic
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. ball — a great time
  15. mate — a friend
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lie — to recline
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — to trim
  21. object — to protest
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bark — to shout

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