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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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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: stem · bark · bat · pitcher · saw · perch · bulb · drill

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. saw — the tool
  7. drill — army training
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. drill — a practice
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. bark — to shout
  12. stem — to come from
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. drill — the tool
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. saw — the tool
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. perch — the fish

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