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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. bark — to shout
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. file — a tool
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. swing — music
  9. file — a document
  10. race — the arms race
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. file — a line of people
  15. shower — to wash
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. race — a contest
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. race — humankind
  23. shower — rain
  24. swing — to play on

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