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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. perch — the fish
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. game — wild animals
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pit — a hole
  13. game — a match
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bark — to shout
  18. lean — thin
  19. lean — to bend
  20. rush — hurry
  21. chest — of your body
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. chest — a box

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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