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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. fall — the season
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. hand — help
  8. bulb — for light
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. hand — in cards
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. squash — the sport
  14. rash — a series
  15. squash — to crush
  16. fall — to drop
  17. degree — an amount
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. degree — temperature
  21. rash — hasty
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bulb — for light

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