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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — to breed
  4. degree — from a university
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. degree — temperature
  7. perch — the fish
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — a face
  10. mug — to rob
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. degree — an amount
  13. game — wild animals
  14. bore — to tire
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. bore — to drill
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of a king
  20. rush — hurry
  21. mate — a friend
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — a match
  24. court — of law

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