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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. degree — from a university
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. can — a tin
  5. club — a group
  6. degree — temperature
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. clip — to cut
  10. perch — the fish
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. clip — for paper
  16. can — a tin
  17. clip — a video
  18. club — for golf
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. can — to be able to
  22. degree — an amount
  23. rush — hurry
  24. club — for dancing

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