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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. bass — the fish
  4. press — a publisher
  5. land — ground
  6. degree — temperature
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bass — low music
  11. land — a country
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. land — to come down
  16. press — newspapers
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. deal — to handle
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. perch — the fish
  23. degree — from a university
  24. leaves — lets stay

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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