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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — clever
  3. spring — of water
  4. degree — an amount
  5. wound — an injury
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. degree — temperature
  9. perch — the fish
  10. suit — to fit
  11. spring — the season
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. suit — in cards
  17. suit — clothes
  18. degree — from a university
  19. spring — a coil
  20. wound — an injury
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. branch — a division
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. coach — a trainer

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