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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 120 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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — in sport
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. net — after costs
  6. file — a line of people
  7. shower — rain
  8. degree — an amount
  9. file — a tool
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. net — for catching
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — the fish
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. pit — a hole
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. pit — in a race
  19. shower — to wash
  20. degree — from a university
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. degree — temperature
  24. file — a document

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