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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. perch — the fish
  3. press — to push
  4. press — a publisher
  5. field — farmland
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. saw — the tool
  9. press — newspapers
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. field — for sport
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. degree — temperature
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. degree — from a university
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. field — a subject
  21. chair — a leader
  22. saw — the tool
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. mouse — the animal

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