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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. perch — the fish
  4. bore — to drill
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rock — a stone
  9. bark — to shout
  10. chest — a box
  11. row — to paddle
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. rock — music
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. chest — of your body
  22. row — a line
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. wax — in the ear

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