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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. field — for sport
  3. perch — the fish
  4. bound — tied together
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bound — certain
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. present — there
  11. bound — obliged
  12. present — the time now
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. present — a gift
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. field — farmland
  18. bark — to shout
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bore — to drill
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. field — a subject

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