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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. shower — to wash
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — an amount
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. key — in music
  8. perch — the fish
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. board — a committee
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. board — to get on
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. shower — rain
  18. bark — to shout
  19. wax — to grow
  20. key — the most important part
  21. key — for a lock
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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