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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tear — from crying
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. bark — to shout
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — a friend
  18. stand — to bear
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. mate — to breed
  21. squash — to crush
  22. bat — the animal
  23. perch — the fish
  24. squash — the sport

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