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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — a group
  7. degree — temperature
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. chest — of your body
  10. degree — from a university
  11. club — for dancing
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. perch — the fish
  14. chest — of your body
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. spell — letters
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — magic
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. degree — an amount
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. game — a match
  24. game — wild animals

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