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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mate · degree · fall · perch · stick · rule

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. degree — temperature
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rule — government
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a partner
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. degree — an amount
  11. mate — a friend
  12. fall — the season
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. fall — to drop
  15. degree — from a university
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. perch — the fish

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