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

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. wind — moving air
  5. perch — the fish
  6. capital — money
  7. content — happy
  8. content — the amount
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. capital — a city
  11. bank — of a river
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. bank — for money
  15. net — for catching
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bank — for money
  18. net — after costs
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. net — in sport
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — lets stay

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