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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. can — a tin
  3. mark — a grade
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. present — there
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. kid — child
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. present — the time now
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. mark — a trace
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. date — the fruit
  17. can — a tin
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bark — to shout
  20. can — to be able to
  21. present — a gift
  22. perch — the fish
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. bark — of a tree

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