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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. can — a tin
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. degree — temperature
  6. net — after costs
  7. can — a tin
  8. last — finally
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. net — in sport
  11. degree — an amount
  12. saw — the tool
  13. degree — from a university
  14. sharp — clever
  15. last — to go on
  16. kick — in football
  17. perch — the fish
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. saw — the tool
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. net — for catching
  22. can — to be able to
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. kick — a thrill

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