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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  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. ball — a round shape
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. scale — in music
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. ball — a great time
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bark — to shout
  10. ball — a dance
  11. spell — letters
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. cap — a hat
  14. dip — to sink
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a lid
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. scale — size or range
  20. spell — a short time
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. spell — magic
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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