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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: can · ground · row · wind · perch · mug · spring · content

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. can — to be able to
  3. ground — the earth
  4. spring — the season
  5. wind — moving air
  6. perch — the fish
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. ground — crushed
  9. mug — to rob
  10. can — a tin
  11. spring — a coil
  12. can — a tin
  13. spring — of water
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. mug — a face
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. content — happy
  19. wind — moving air
  20. content — the amount
  21. mug — a cup
  22. row — a line
  23. row — to paddle
  24. ground — a position

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