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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. degree — temperature
  3. cold — not warm
  4. degree — an amount
  5. craft — boats
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — the fish
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. mug — to rob
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. perch — the fish
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. degree — from a university
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. mug — a face
  21. craft — a skill
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. mug — a cup
  24. perch — for a bird

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