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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: court · row · bark · perch · season · stock · calf · lie

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  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. court — of law
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. bark — to shout
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. perch — the fish
  13. stock — shares
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. season — of the year
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of a king
  20. lie — to recline
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. row — to paddle
  23. season — in sport
  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