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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. cap — of ice
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. cap — a lid
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. shower — rain
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. perch — the fish
  19. cap — a hat
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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