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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. degree — from a university
  3. staff — employees
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. wound — an injury
  8. craft — boats
  9. mate — a partner
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. degree — temperature
  12. staff — a stick
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — music
  15. scale — size or range
  16. wound — an injury
  17. perch — the fish
  18. staff — employees
  19. craft — a skill
  20. swing — to play on
  21. scale — in music
  22. mate — to breed
  23. degree — an amount
  24. mate — a friend

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