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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
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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: bass · ground · pop · perch · spell · rash · land · bulb

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. pop — music
  3. land — ground
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. rash — a series
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. land — a country
  10. bass — the fish
  11. land — to come down
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. perch — the fish
  14. rash — hasty
  15. bulb — for light
  16. pop — soda
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pop — to visit
  22. spell — a short time
  23. ground — the earth
  24. spell — magic

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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