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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. bark — to shout
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. wax — to grow
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. perch — the fish
  11. game — a match
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. rest — what's left
  14. row — to paddle
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. court — of law
  19. rest — what's left
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. row — a line
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. game — wild animals

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