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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. tear — to rip
  3. drill — a practice
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — a group
  7. rock — music
  8. cold — an illness
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — army training
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bark — to shout
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. club — for dancing
  23. rock — a stone
  24. tear — from crying

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