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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — a short time
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. plane — a tool
  6. saw — the tool
  7. spell — letters
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. track — to keep track
  10. pound — a weight
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. track — a song
  15. saw — the tool
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. wound — an injury
  19. track — a path
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. bark — to shout
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. plane — in geometry

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