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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 120 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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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 · content · temple · cap · object · pound · swing · shower

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. swing — music
  4. object — a thing
  5. pound — a weight
  6. content — happy
  7. swing — to play on
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. content — the amount
  10. cap — of ice
  11. swing — in golf
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. cap — a lid
  15. perch — the fish
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. object — an aim
  20. shower — rain
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. shower — to wash
  23. object — to protest
  24. pound — for dogs

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