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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. last — final
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. can — a tin
  8. last — finally
  9. perch — the fish
  10. last — to go on
  11. can — a tin
  12. season — of the year
  13. content — happy
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. can — to be able to
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. degree — from a university
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. content — the amount
  21. season — in sport
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. degree — an amount
  24. degree — temperature

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