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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
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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: file · rash · pitcher · perch · toast · fan · bark · date

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. toast — bread
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. file — a tool
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — hasty
  17. bark — to shout
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. date — the fruit
  20. rash — a series
  21. file — a line of people
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. file — a document

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