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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 120 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. tear — from crying
  3. present — a gift
  4. can — a tin
  5. present — the time now
  6. can — a tin
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. can — to be able to
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. tear — from crying
  12. present — there
  13. suit — in cards
  14. suit — to fit
  15. perch — the fish
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. suit — clothes
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. ground — crushed
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — the earth
  24. perch — for a bird

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