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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 116 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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. pit — a hole
  3. band — a ring
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. band — a music group
  6. snap — to click
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. suit — clothes
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. suit — to fit
  12. perch — the fish
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. kid — to tease
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — completely
  17. suit — in cards
  18. degree — an amount
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. kid — child
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. pit — in a race

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