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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. object — an aim
  8. rash — hasty
  9. degree — temperature
  10. rash — a series
  11. perch — the fish
  12. field — a subject
  13. object — to protest
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. degree — an amount
  16. object — a thing
  17. chair — a leader
  18. charge — a price
  19. field — for sport
  20. charge — in control
  21. charge — electricity
  22. degree — from a university
  23. field — farmland
  24. chair — to sit on

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