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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: march · ground · fall · bear · rush · perch · pop · land

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. land — ground
  4. march — the month
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ground — a position
  7. rush — hurry
  8. fall — to drop
  9. land — to come down
  10. pop — music
  11. bear — the animal
  12. land — a country
  13. perch — the fish
  14. pop — soda
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. pop — to visit
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bear — the animal
  21. march — the month
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. march — music
  24. ground — crushed

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