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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. last — to go on
  3. scale — size or range
  4. degree — an amount
  5. sharp — clever
  6. saw — the tool
  7. last — finally
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — the fish
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. degree — temperature
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. staff — employees
  15. scale — in music
  16. saw — the tool
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. staff — a stick
  19. degree — from a university
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — hasty
  22. last — final
  23. staff — employees
  24. sharp — with an edge

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