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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · chair · fan · roll · bark · perch · bore · shower

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. shower — rain
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bore — to tire
  7. roll — a cake
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. shower — to wash
  13. degree — from a university
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bark — to shout
  19. perch — the fish
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. degree — temperature
  22. roll — a list
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to drill

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