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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cue — for pool
  3. degree — temperature
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. degree — from a university
  6. perch — the fish
  7. clip — to cut
  8. clip — a video
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. clip — for paper
  11. stock — shares
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. cue — a hint
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. cue — a signal
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. snap — to click
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. stock — goods
  21. degree — an amount
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. stem — to come from

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