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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: wind · mug · press · perch · pound · chair

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a leader
  4. wind — moving air
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. press — a publisher
  9. press — to push
  10. mug — a face
  11. pound — a weight
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. perch — the fish
  16. mug — a cup
  17. press — newspapers
  18. mug — to rob

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