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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bound — obliged
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. firm — a company
  8. firm — decided
  9. bound — tied together
  10. firm — steady
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. bound — certain
  16. capital — money
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. game — wild animals
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. perch — the fish
  23. game — a match
  24. capital — a city

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