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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. drill — army training
  3. wound — an injury
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — a container
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bark — to shout
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. drill — a practice
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. drill — the tool
  15. wound — an injury
  16. branch — a division
  17. perch — the fish
  18. hand — help
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. prune — to trim
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bark — of a tree

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