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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bank — for money
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a tool
  5. roll — a cake
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. perch — the fish
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bank — of a river
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. bound — certain
  13. bark — to shout
  14. file — a line of people
  15. roll — a list
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bank — for money
  19. dip — to sink
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. dip — a sauce

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