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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 120 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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. clip — a video
  3. bear — the animal
  4. shower — to wash
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bear — the animal
  8. shower — rain
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — a country
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — to shout
  17. scale — in music
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. land — ground
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. clip — for paper

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