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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. spring — the season
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. chip — to eat
  11. chip — for betting
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. bark — to shout
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. branch — a division
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. perch — the fish
  24. branch — of a bank

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