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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. last — final
  6. last — to go on
  7. stock — shares
  8. spell — magic
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. last — finally
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. bark — to shout
  14. face — to point toward
  15. foot — a measure
  16. face — part of the head
  17. spell — a short time
  18. perch — the fish
  19. club — a group
  20. stock — goods
  21. club — for golf
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. face — to confront
  24. club — for dancing

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