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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 120 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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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: rule · perch · tear · pound · content · hand · rest · bass

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. rest — what's left
  3. hand — in cards
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. pound — a weight
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. rule — a law
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bass — low music
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. content — the amount
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. hand — help
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. content — happy
  21. rest — a break
  22. tear — to rip
  23. bass — the fish
  24. rule — government

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