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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.

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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: fan · bark · ground · hand · craft · lash · perch · board

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. ground — the earth
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. ground — a position
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. board — to get on
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. craft — boats
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bark — to shout
  14. hand — in cards
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. ground — crushed
  17. hand — help
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. board — a committee
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. craft — a skill
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. fan — a supporter

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