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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. bat — the animal
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. content — the amount
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. perch — the fish
  12. cell — in biology
  13. row — a line
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. cell — a phone
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — to paddle
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. content — happy
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. racket — for tennis

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