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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 116 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. perch — the fish
  4. game — wild animals
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. game — a match
  10. drill — a practice
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. row — a line
  18. tear — from crying
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. drill — the tool
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. bark — to shout
  23. row — to paddle
  24. drill — army training

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