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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: bark · cue · root · bowl · perch · wake · dip · spring

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. root — the cause
  6. cue — a hint
  7. dip — to sink
  8. cue — a signal
  9. wake — a trail
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — a coil
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. perch — the fish
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. spring — of water
  20. root — of a plant
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. root — of a word
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. cue — for pool

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