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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 124 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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. bark — to shout
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. perch — the fish
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. court — of law
  15. court — of a king
  16. cold — not warm
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a city
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. foot — a measure
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. court — for sport
  24. hide — to keep secret

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