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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mark · perch · present · bass · game · bear · land · fall

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. fall — to drop
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. fall — the season
  6. bass — low music
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. mark — a grade
  9. mark — a trace
  10. land — ground
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. perch — the fish
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. present — there
  17. game — wild animals
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. land — to come down
  20. bass — the fish
  21. present — the time now
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. game — a match
  24. land — a country

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