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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 · tear · pitcher · bulb · rush · tube · prune · content

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. tear — from crying
  5. content — the amount
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — a container
  9. prune — to trim
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. prune — to trim
  13. tear — to rip
  14. perch — the fish
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. content — happy
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rush — hurry
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — a jug

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