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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 124 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: lean · pit · bear · perch · ground · march · hide · cell

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. march — music
  3. cell — in biology
  4. bear — the animal
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ground — crushed
  7. pit — in a race
  8. lean — thin
  9. march — the month
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. ground — the earth
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. pit — a hole
  18. cell — a phone
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. ground — a position
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. perch — the fish
  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