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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. present — the time now
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. rock — music
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bank — of a river
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rock — a stone
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bank — for money
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bat — the animal
  17. perch — the fish
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — money
  20. present — a gift
  21. bank — for money
  22. kick — in football
  23. degree — temperature
  24. present — there

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