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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. race — the arms race
  4. degree — temperature
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. board — a committee
  7. snap — to click
  8. race — humankind
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rush — hurry
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bass — low music
  14. degree — from a university
  15. race — a contest
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. board — to get on
  23. degree — an amount
  24. dip — a sauce

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