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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.

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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 · march · last · mouse · dip · branch · root · wake

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. last — final
  3. perch — the fish
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. march — music
  7. root — of a word
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. branch — a division
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. dip — to sink
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. last — to go on
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. root — of a plant
  17. march — the month
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. last — finally
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. march — the month
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. root — the cause
  24. perch — for a bird

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