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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. rash — hasty
  4. pound — a weight
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. row — a line
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. court — for sport
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. rash — a series
  13. court — of a king
  14. row — to paddle
  15. season — of the year
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bark — to shout
  19. season — in sport
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. court — of law

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