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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. ground — a position
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — to tire
  9. file — a line of people
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. track — a song
  12. mark — a trace
  13. can — a tin
  14. bark — to shout
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. can — to be able to
  17. track — to keep track
  18. can — a tin
  19. file — a document
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — crushed
  22. file — a tool
  23. track — a path
  24. mark — a grade

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