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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.

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: arm · bore · bark · march · perch · stock · shower · chip

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. march — the month
  4. shower — rain
  5. march — the month
  6. perch — the fish
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. chip — to eat
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bore — to drill
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. shower — to wash
  17. bore — to tire
  18. stock — shares
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. chip — for betting
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bark — to shout
  23. march — music
  24. stock — goods

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