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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. chip — to eat
  3. degree — from a university
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. chip — for betting
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — the animal
  9. perch — the fish
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — in biology
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. cell — a phone
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. last — finally
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — final
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. degree — an amount

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