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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 116 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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. perch — the fish
  4. mine — for digging
  5. degree — an amount
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. track — a path
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. pop — to visit
  13. pop — music
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. degree — temperature
  19. track — to keep track
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pop — soda
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. track — a song
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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