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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 124 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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. perch — the fish
  3. track — a song
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. cap — a lid
  6. rest — a break
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. bear — the animal
  9. clip — a video
  10. bear — the animal
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. track — a path
  13. bark — to shout
  14. cap — a hat
  15. track — to keep track
  16. clip — to cut
  17. dip — to sink
  18. cap — of ice
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. clip — for paper

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