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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: perch · net · wound · rest · bear · stem · fan · pitch

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. rest — a break
  7. rest — what's left
  8. stem — to come from
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bear — the animal
  14. rest — what's left
  15. perch — the fish
  16. net — after costs
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. pitch — completely
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — in sport
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bear — the animal

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