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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. rush — hurry
  4. degree — from a university
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. squash — to crush
  7. squash — the sport
  8. perch — the fish
  9. scale — in music
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. degree — an amount
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. tear — from crying
  19. scale — size or range
  20. tear — to rip
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. leaves — of a tree

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