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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 120 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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. firm — a company
  3. degree — from a university
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cell — a phone
  7. swing — in golf
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. cell — in biology
  10. degree — temperature
  11. swing — music
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. perch — the fish
  14. staff — employees
  15. firm — steady
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. saw — the tool
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. staff — a stick
  21. staff — employees
  22. firm — decided
  23. saw — the tool
  24. swing — to play on

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