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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 120 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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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: bowl · present · cap · race · perch · file · drill · bark

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. perch — the fish
  4. file — a document
  5. drill — the tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. present — a gift
  8. race — a contest
  9. drill — army training
  10. present — the time now
  11. race — humankind
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. drill — a practice
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. file — a tool
  17. present — there
  18. cap — a lid
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. race — the arms race
  21. bark — to shout
  22. cap — of ice
  23. cap — a hat
  24. bark — of a tree

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