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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.

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: net · perch · leaves · kid · land · squash · rush · content

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. squash — the sport
  3. content — happy
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. kid — to tease
  6. land — ground
  7. land — to come down
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. perch — the fish
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. net — for catching
  12. land — a country
  13. rush — hurry
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. squash — to crush
  16. content — the amount
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. net — in sport
  23. kid — child
  24. net — after costs

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