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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bass — the fish
  8. roll — a list
  9. net — for catching
  10. perch — the fish
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. net — after costs
  14. bass — low music
  15. bark — to shout
  16. roll — a cake
  17. cell — a phone
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. net — in sport
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. chair — a leader
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. roll — on a roll

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