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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. last — finally
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. band — a ring
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. last — final
  12. hand — help
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bore — to drill
  19. last — to go on
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. bark — to shout
  22. band — a music group
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. perch — the fish

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