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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — from a university
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. mug — a face
  9. degree — an amount
  10. fine — high quality
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. fine — all right
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. row — a line
  18. mug — to rob
  19. drill — a practice
  20. content — happy
  21. perch — the fish
  22. drill — army training
  23. mug — a cup
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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