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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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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: court · perch · present · plane · net · swing · cell · content

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. perch — the fish
  3. net — in sport
  4. plane — a tool
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. present — a gift
  8. swing — in golf
  9. present — there
  10. swing — to play on
  11. cell — a phone
  12. court — for sport
  13. content — the amount
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. swing — music
  16. content — happy
  17. net — after costs
  18. cell — in biology
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. net — for catching
  21. present — the time now
  22. court — of law
  23. court — of a king
  24. perch — for a bird

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