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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: perch · track · bay · bowl · deal · mine · content · net

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. content — happy
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. deal — to handle
  11. track — a path
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. track — a song
  14. track — to keep track
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. net — after costs
  19. perch — the fish
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. content — the amount
  22. mine — for digging
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. net — for catching

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