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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.

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: kid · rush · content · spring · row · chest · lean · perch

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. content — the amount
  4. lean — thin
  5. kid — to tease
  6. chest — of your body
  7. row — a line
  8. spring — of water
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. chest — a box
  11. kid — child
  12. spring — a coil
  13. content — happy
  14. rush — hurry
  15. chest — of your body
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. perch — the fish
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. spring — the season
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. lean — to bend
  24. perch — for a bird

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