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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 · scale · pound · present · root · march · tear · spring

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. present — there
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. spring — of water
  7. tear — from crying
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. present — the time now
  10. root — the cause
  11. present — a gift
  12. root — of a plant
  13. tear — to rip
  14. perch — the fish
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season
  19. scale — size or range
  20. scale — in music
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. march — the month
  23. root — of a word
  24. march — the month

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