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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bass — the fish
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. fall — to drop
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. degree — from a university
  10. degree — an amount
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. deal — to handle
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bass — low music
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. perch — the fish
  19. fall — the season
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. fall — to drop

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