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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. wound — an injury
  3. degree — an amount
  4. tear — from crying
  5. perch — the fish
  6. wound — an injury
  7. tear — to rip
  8. track — to keep track
  9. tear — from crying
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. ball — a great time
  12. bulb — for light
  13. degree — from a university
  14. ball — a dance
  15. track — a song
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. track — a path
  22. season — of the year
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bulb — for light

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