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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: shower · wound · chair · bark · perch · bear · bay · present

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. bear — the animal
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. present — there
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bark — to shout
  8. chair — a leader
  9. shower — rain
  10. present — the time now
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. wound — an injury
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. present — a gift
  22. wound — an injury
  23. perch — the fish
  24. bay — a part of the sea

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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