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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.

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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: hide · cold · rash · bank · bear · perch · spell · pound

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bank — for money
  4. bear — the animal
  5. cold — not warm
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. bank — of a river
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. pound — a weight
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic
  19. rash — hasty
  20. bear — the animal
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. bank — for money
  24. perch — the fish

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