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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. object — to protest
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. degree — from a university
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — final
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. wound — an injury
  10. object — an aim
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. pound — a weight
  14. wound — an injury
  15. fork — in a road
  16. last — finally
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. object — a thing
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — an amount

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