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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. branch — a division
  5. mate — to breed
  6. perch — the fish
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. mate — a partner
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. clip — for paper
  12. mate — a friend
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. bark — to shout
  17. clip — a video
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. clip — to cut
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. kick — in football

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