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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pound — a weight
  4. cold — not warm
  5. perch — the fish
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. row — to paddle
  13. rule — government
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. cold — an illness
  16. chair — a leader
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. row — a line
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. rule — a law
  24. chair — to sit on

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