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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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. bound — obliged
  3. game — wild animals
  4. club — a group
  5. game — a match
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. degree — from a university
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bound — certain
  13. bound — tied together
  14. degree — an amount
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. perch — the fish
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — for dancing
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. sharp — clever
  21. saw — the tool
  22. season — in sport
  23. degree — temperature
  24. perch — for a bird

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