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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: perch · pitch · capital · row · key · wound · bark · press

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bark — to shout
  3. row — a line
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. wound — an injury
  6. capital — a city
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. press — to push
  9. perch — the fish
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. press — a publisher
  14. key — in music
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. press — newspapers
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. key — for a lock
  19. key — the most important part
  20. pitch — completely
  21. capital — money
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. wound — an injury
  24. perch — for a bird

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