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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.

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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — happy
  6. pound — a weight
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. land — a country
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. branch — a division
  11. perch — the fish
  12. content — the amount
  13. hand — in cards
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. hand — help
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. land — to come down
  21. board — a committee
  22. board — to get on
  23. land — ground
  24. branch — of a bank

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