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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. last — finally
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. degree — temperature
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. wax — to grow
  18. last — to go on
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. degree — from a university
  22. pitch — completely
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. last — final

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