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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: rule · bear · land · hide · pitcher · perch · pound · row

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. land — to come down
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. bear — the animal
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. perch — the fish
  12. bear — the animal
  13. land — a country
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. land — ground
  17. rule — government
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. rule — a law
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. row — a line
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pitcher — a jug

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