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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 asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. cue — a hint
  3. rash — a series
  4. cue — a signal
  5. spell — letters
  6. cue — for pool
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. march — the month
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. land — ground
  13. land — to come down
  14. rash — hasty
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. face — to point toward
  17. land — a country
  18. face — part of the head
  19. march — the month
  20. spell — a short time
  21. perch — the fish
  22. bark — to shout
  23. face — to confront
  24. march — music

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