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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. perch — the fish
  5. cue — a hint
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. fall — to drop
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bat — the animal
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fall — the season
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. fall — to drop
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. cue — a signal
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bark — to shout
  20. track — a song
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. track — to keep track
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bat — for baseball

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