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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: bark · arm · march · spell · key · tear · lash · perch

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. spell — letters
  9. key — the most important part
  10. tear — from crying
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. key — for a lock
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. march — the month
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. tear — from crying
  17. march — the month
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. march — music
  20. key — in music
  21. spell — a short time
  22. tear — to rip
  23. spell — magic
  24. bark — to shout

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