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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. spell — magic
  3. degree — an amount
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — what's left
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. pitch — completely
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. mine — for digging
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rest — a break
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. branch — a division
  24. spell — letters

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