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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. court — of law
  4. spell — letters
  5. court — of a king
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bark — to shout
  8. court — for sport
  9. pitch — completely
  10. bound — obliged
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. stand — to bear
  13. game — wild animals
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. game — a match
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bound — tied together
  20. spell — magic
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. bound — certain
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. perch — for a bird

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