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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. drill — army training
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bulb — for light
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bark — to shout
  19. perch — the fish
  20. mine — for digging
  21. bulb — for light
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. branch — a division
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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