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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. perch — the fish
  5. cold — an illness
  6. suit — to fit
  7. bear — the animal
  8. scale — in music
  9. suit — clothes
  10. cold — not warm
  11. scale — size or range
  12. court — for sport
  13. suit — in cards
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. bear — the animal
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bark — to shout
  19. last — finally
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. court — of a king
  22. last — final
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. last — to go on

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