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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 116 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: mine · row · perch · content · wind · pound · coach · spring

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. content — the amount
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. wind — moving air
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. wind — moving air
  13. mine — for digging
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — a coil
  19. pound — a weight
  20. content — happy
  21. spring — of water
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. row — a line
  24. coach — a trainer

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