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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 116 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: trunk · pound · perch · wind · bowl · march · mouse · deal

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. wind — moving air
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. perch — the fish
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pound — a weight
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. march — music
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. march — the month
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. deal — to handle
  23. march — the month
  24. mouse — for a computer

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