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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: wake · land · perch · net · pop · ball · ground · arm

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. wake — a trail
  3. net — after costs
  4. ground — crushed
  5. perch — the fish
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. ball — a dance
  8. land — ground
  9. ground — a position
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. pop — to visit
  13. land — to come down
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. ball — a great time
  16. pop — music
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. net — for catching
  20. land — a country
  21. pop — soda
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. net — in sport
  24. arm — part of the body

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