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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rush — hurry
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. race — humankind
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bark — to shout
  11. track — a song
  12. track — to keep track
  13. race — a contest
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. plane — a tool
  22. race — the arms race
  23. track — a path
  24. bulb — for light

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