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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. roll — a list
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. land — to come down
  13. roll — a cake
  14. land — ground
  15. wind — moving air
  16. degree — from a university
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. land — a country
  21. degree — temperature
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. toast — bread
  24. roll — on a roll

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