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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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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: net · rest · perch · pound · bowl · roll · patient · clip

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. roll — a cake
  5. rest — what's left
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. roll — a list
  8. clip — a video
  9. net — after costs
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. net — for catching
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. rest — what's left
  16. net — in sport
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. clip — for paper
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. rest — a break
  24. bowl — a football final

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