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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. perch — the fish
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. court — of a king
  6. degree — from a university
  7. current — electric
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. court — of law
  10. court — for sport
  11. roll — a cake
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. current — of water
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. track — to keep track
  18. degree — temperature
  19. degree — an amount
  20. track — a path
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. roll — a list
  24. track — a song

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