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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. season — in sport
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. pitch — completely
  9. last — to go on
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. perch — the fish
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. rock — music
  16. last — finally
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. rock — a stone
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. last — final
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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