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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. clip — to cut
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. cue — a signal
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. game — wild animals
  10. cue — for pool
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bark — to shout
  14. game — a match
  15. clip — for paper
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — a phone
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cue — a hint
  20. clip — a video
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. hide — to keep secret

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