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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: season · content · pound · trunk · can · bear · march · saw

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. saw — the tool
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. content — the amount
  5. can — a tin
  6. season — in sport
  7. can — to be able to
  8. bear — the animal
  9. content — happy
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bear — the animal
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — a weight
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. can — a tin
  19. march — the month
  20. saw — the tool
  21. march — the month
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. march — music

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