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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: mark · perch · pop · drill · scale · club · bore · cell

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. pop — to visit
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. club — for golf
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. club — a group
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. drill — the tool
  9. club — for dancing
  10. bore — to tire
  11. pop — soda
  12. mark — a trace
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. scale — size or range
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. drill — army training
  18. drill — a practice
  19. scale — in music
  20. perch — the fish
  21. mark — a grade
  22. pop — music
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. bore — to drill

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