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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. track — a path
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bound — certain
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bore — to drill
  10. track — to keep track
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. pass — a permit
  13. track — a song
  14. bark — to shout
  15. perch — the fish
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bound — tied together
  20. spell — magic
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. rest — a break
  24. pass — to spend time

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