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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 116 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: press · straw · perch · spell · bulb · bark · bay · wind

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. wind — moving air
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bulb — for light
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. perch — the fish
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. press — to push
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. wind — moving air
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bark — to shout
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bulb — for light
  20. spell — magic
  21. press — a publisher
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. spell — a short time
  24. spell — letters

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