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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cold — an illness
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. degree — temperature
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bat — the animal
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. prune — to trim
  10. bass — the fish
  11. present — the time now
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. present — a gift
  16. cold — not warm
  17. season — in sport
  18. degree — an amount
  19. present — there
  20. bass — low music
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. prune — to trim
  23. degree — from a university
  24. season — of the year

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