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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. perch — the fish
  3. game — wild animals
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. chair — a leader
  6. kid — child
  7. degree — from a university
  8. firm — decided
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pound — a weight
  12. firm — steady
  13. charge — electricity
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. charge — a price
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. charge — in control
  19. kid — to tease
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. game — a match
  22. firm — a company
  23. degree — an amount
  24. game — a kind of play

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