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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  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. firm — a company
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. degree — from a university
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. firm — decided
  10. lean — to bend
  11. firm — steady
  12. degree — temperature
  13. file — a tool
  14. lean — thin
  15. bass — low music
  16. file — a line of people
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bass — the fish
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. file — a document
  23. patient — a sick person
  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