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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. drill — the tool
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pop — to visit
  6. stem — to come from
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. pop — music
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. drill — army training
  14. pop — soda
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. bark — to shout
  18. kick — in football
  19. sharp — clever
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. rule — a law
  22. rule — government
  23. perch — the fish
  24. drill — a practice

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