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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. stem — to come from
  3. track — to keep track
  4. degree — from a university
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. bass — the fish
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — in music
  10. track — a path
  11. degree — temperature
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. track — a song
  19. key — the most important part
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. bass — low music
  22. degree — an amount
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. perch — the fish

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