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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. bark — to shout
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. fine — all right
  6. chest — a box
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. face — part of the head
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. root — of a word
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. perch — the fish
  14. chest — of your body
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — the cause
  18. face — to confront
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. fine — high quality

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