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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. firm — decided
  3. drill — the tool
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. drill — army training
  6. row — to paddle
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. degree — temperature
  11. drill — a practice
  12. firm — a company
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. firm — steady
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. perch — the fish
  17. capital — a city
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. row — a line
  20. sharp — clever
  21. degree — from a university
  22. capital — money
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. degree — an amount

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