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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: perch · cue · season · tear · bark · foot · pound · spell

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. cue — for pool
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. cue — a hint
  8. tear — from crying
  9. spell — letters
  10. foot — a measure
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. perch — the fish
  17. spell — a short time
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. season — of the year
  20. spell — magic
  21. bark — to shout
  22. season — in sport
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. perch — for a bird

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