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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.

Make a worksheet

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: spring · row · temple · perch · pitcher · content · wound · straw

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. wound — an injury
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. perch — the fish
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. spring — of water
  14. content — happy
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. content — the amount
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. row — a line
  22. wound — an injury
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  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