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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 sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. race — a contest
  3. mate — a partner
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. court — of a king
  7. date — the fruit
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bark — to shout
  11. court — for sport
  12. race — the arms race
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. court — of law
  18. race — humankind
  19. perch — the fish
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. mate — to breed
  24. perch — for a bird

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