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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.

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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. fine — all right
  3. present — the time now
  4. bass — the fish
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. present — there
  7. bass — low music
  8. file — a document
  9. can — a tin
  10. degree — temperature
  11. can — a tin
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. can — to be able to
  14. present — a gift
  15. degree — an amount
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. file — a line of people
  19. degree — from a university
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. fine — high quality
  22. file — a tool
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. perch — for a bird

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