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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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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. rest — what's left
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. rest — a break
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. perch — the fish
  14. bore — to tire
  15. rest — what's left
  16. dip — to sink
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. row — a line
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bore — to drill

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