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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.

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: bass · prune · bore · patient · perch · ground · mate · march

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. mate — a partner
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bass — low music
  9. ground — crushed
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. bore — to tire
  13. ground — a position
  14. perch — the fish
  15. prune — to trim
  16. mate — to breed
  17. prune — to trim
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. march — the month
  21. bass — the fish
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. ground — the earth
  24. mate — a friend

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