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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. degree — from a university
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. perch — the fish
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bark — to shout
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. spring — the season
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. degree — an amount
  16. mug — a cup
  17. spring — of water
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. spring — a coil
  20. degree — temperature
  21. fall — to drop
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. mug — a face

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