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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. perch — the fish
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. plane — a tool
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bark — to shout
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. spring — of water
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — for sport
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. spring — a coil
  18. field — a subject
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. spring — the season
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. straw — dry grass

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