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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: rush · straw · net · wound · march · perch · mark · tube

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. perch — the fish
  6. net — for catching
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. net — in sport
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. net — after costs
  16. mark — a grade
  17. tube — a container
  18. rush — hurry
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. mark — a trace
  21. march — the month
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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