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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.

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: racket · mine · hand · pound · root · can · clip · perch

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pound — a weight
  3. hand — help
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. hand — in cards
  9. clip — a video
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. root — the cause
  12. can — to be able to
  13. can — a tin
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mine — for digging
  18. root — of a word
  19. clip — to cut
  20. can — a tin
  21. clip — for paper
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. root — of a plant
  24. perch — the fish

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