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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: cap · ball · bark · tear · pitcher · club · rule · perch

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. tear — to rip
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bark — to shout
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. perch — the fish
  12. club — for dancing
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cap — a hat
  15. club — for golf
  16. rule — government
  17. ball — a dance
  18. cap — of ice
  19. ball — a great time
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. club — a group
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. rule — a law
  24. cap — a lid

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