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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 116 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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — the fish
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bore — to tire
  8. scale — size or range
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. march — the month
  11. bark — to shout
  12. march — the month
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. mate — a partner
  19. march — music
  20. craft — a skill
  21. mate — to breed
  22. scale — in music
  23. bore — to drill
  24. scale — for weighing

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