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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. court — of law
  5. degree — an amount
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. craft — boats
  9. degree — from a university
  10. court — for sport
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. rest — a break
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. perch — the fish
  17. craft — a skill
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. rest — what's left
  20. degree — temperature
  21. kid — to tease
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. court — of a king

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