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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: field · club · leaves · perch · cell · degree

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. cell — in biology
  3. degree — from a university
  4. field — for sport
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. perch — the fish
  8. club — for dancing
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. field — a subject
  11. degree — temperature
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cell — a phone
  14. field — farmland
  15. degree — an amount
  16. club — a group
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. club — for golf

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