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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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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: content · rash · rock · mine · perch · capital · ground · fall

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. fall — to drop
  3. content — the amount
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. content — happy
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. ground — crushed
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. rash — hasty
  11. capital — a city
  12. ground — the earth
  13. mine — for digging
  14. perch — the fish
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. ground — a position
  17. fall — the season
  18. rock — a stone
  19. fall — to drop
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — music
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. rash — a series

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