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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 116 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: perch · bark · march · mouse · track · clip · bore · dip

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — for paper
  4. march — the month
  5. track — a path
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to tire
  8. dip — to sink
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. track — a song
  12. track — to keep track
  13. bore — to drill
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. march — the month
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bark — to shout
  21. march — music
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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