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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. content — the amount
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. bark — to shout
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bound — obliged
  11. ball — a dance
  12. content — happy
  13. stem — to come from
  14. ground — a position
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bound — tied together
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bound — certain
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. ball — a great time
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. ground — crushed

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