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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 124 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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — the fish
  4. present — the time now
  5. scale — in music
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. degree — from a university
  8. mate — a partner
  9. present — there
  10. court — of a king
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. wind — moving air
  17. snap — to click
  18. mate — a friend
  19. wind — moving air
  20. court — for sport
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. court — of law
  23. scale — size or range
  24. mate — to breed

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