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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 120 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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. spring — a coil
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a line
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bass — low music
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. chest — of your body
  11. track — to keep track
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. track — a song
  14. chest — a box
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. track — a path
  18. spring — the season
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bass — the fish
  22. spring — of water
  23. perch — the fish
  24. pound — a weight

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