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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: perch · prune · mark · march · stem · land · content · rash

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rash — hasty
  6. rash — a series
  7. mark — a trace
  8. land — to come down
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. land — a country
  11. content — the amount
  12. march — the month
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. content — happy
  19. land — ground
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. march — the month
  23. march — music
  24. prune — to trim

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