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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. can — a tin
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. perch — the fish
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. game — wild animals
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. rock — music
  12. bark — to shout
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — to be able to
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. game — a match
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. scale — size or range
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. scale — in music
  24. rock — a stone

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