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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: perch · leaves · land · game · wind · bulb · rush · dip

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. land — to come down
  5. game — a match
  6. dip — to sink
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. bulb — for light
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. wind — moving air
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. rush — hurry
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. land — ground
  17. bulb — for light
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. perch — the fish
  20. wind — moving air
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. game — wild animals
  24. rush — to hurry

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