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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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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: bulb · race · fall · perch · bark · tear · mouse · arm

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. tear — to rip
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. race — humankind
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. race — the arms race
  10. fall — the season
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. tear — from crying
  15. race — a contest
  16. perch — the fish
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bulb — for light
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. tear — from crying
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bulb — for light

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