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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rest — what's left
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. shower — rain
  10. lean — thin
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. degree — an amount
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — final
  15. rest — a break
  16. shower — to wash
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. perch — the fish
  19. last — finally
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. lean — to bend
  22. rest — what's left
  23. degree — temperature
  24. dip — to sink

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