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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: clip · kid · pound · deal · land · perch · straw · bulb

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. land — ground
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — to handle
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — for light
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. land — to come down
  13. clip — for paper
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. clip — a video
  16. land — a country
  17. kid — child
  18. perch — the fish
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. clip — to cut
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bulb — of a plant

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