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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: pop · fall · perch · stem · saw · can · march · mug

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. march — the month
  3. can — to be able to
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. mug — a face
  6. perch — the fish
  7. can — a tin
  8. fall — to drop
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. mug — to rob
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — the season
  14. saw — the tool
  15. pop — to visit
  16. march — music
  17. mug — a cup
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. march — the month
  20. can — a tin
  21. pop — music
  22. stem — to come from
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. stem — a stem cell

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