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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: cell · ball · bank · perch · degree · tear

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. degree — an amount
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bank — for money
  10. degree — from a university
  11. tear — to rip
  12. ball — a great time
  13. bank — of a river
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bank — for money
  16. ball — a dance
  17. perch — the fish
  18. tear — from crying

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