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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 116 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: bark · pound · season · perch · trunk · content · pass · net

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. pass — a permit
  5. net — in sport
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. net — after costs
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. pound — a weight
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. season — in sport
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. net — for catching
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. content — happy
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. season — of the year
  21. content — the amount
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. perch — the fish

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