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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. degree — temperature
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — a contest
  12. current — of water
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — from a university
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. hand — help
  17. current — happening now
  18. race — the arms race
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. sharp — clever
  23. perch — the fish
  24. current — electric

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