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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bark · capital · perch · swing · root · firm · court · board

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. firm — decided
  3. perch — the fish
  4. capital — a city
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. root — of a word
  8. court — of a king
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. swing — in golf
  12. court — for sport
  13. swing — music
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. root — the cause
  16. capital — money
  17. firm — a company
  18. root — of a plant
  19. firm — steady
  20. board — a committee
  21. board — to get on
  22. swing — to play on
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. court — of law

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