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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. fall — to drop
  5. degree — temperature
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cold — not warm
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. drill — a practice
  13. fall — the season
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. craft — boats
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. perch — the fish
  19. fall — to drop
  20. craft — a skill
  21. drill — the tool
  22. staff — employees
  23. drill — army training
  24. staff — employees

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