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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. march — the month
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. perch — the fish
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. face — part of the head
  7. bark — to shout
  8. march — the month
  9. fine — all right
  10. rash — a series
  11. bound — obliged
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. face — to confront
  14. bound — tied together
  15. face — to point toward
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. march — music
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. rash — hasty
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. fine — a penalty

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