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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: staff · row · content · stand · perch · pound · field · fan

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. content — happy
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. content — the amount
  6. pound — a weight
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. field — farmland
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. row — a line
  11. staff — employees
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. perch — the fish
  17. staff — a stick
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. field — a subject
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. staff — employees
  22. stand — to bear
  23. row — to paddle
  24. stand — on your feet

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