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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. band — a music group
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. perch — the fish
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. band — a ring
  8. ball — a great time
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. bark — to shout
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. chest — a box
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. chest — of your body
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stand — to bear
  24. ball — a dance

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