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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. current — happening now
  3. bark — to shout
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. content — the amount
  8. current — of water
  9. content — happy
  10. perch — the fish
  11. roll — a cake
  12. current — electric
  13. pit — a hole
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. track — a song
  16. track — a path
  17. pit — in a race
  18. track — to keep track
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. bowl — a football final

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