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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 116 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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. squash — to crush
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. kid — child
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. rock — a stone
  9. spell — magic
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rock — music
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. perch — the fish
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bound — certain
  17. bore — to tire
  18. spell — a short time
  19. squash — the sport
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bark — to shout
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. spell — letters

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