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

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. mug — a cup
  3. degree — temperature
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. march — music
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. staff — a stick
  8. spring — of water
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. perch — the fish
  11. degree — an amount
  12. mug — to rob
  13. staff — employees
  14. rest — what's left
  15. snap — to click
  16. degree — from a university
  17. mug — a face
  18. march — the month
  19. rest — a break
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. march — the month
  22. rest — what's left
  23. spring — a coil
  24. staff — employees

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