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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: leaves · bear · pass · perch · ground · court · cold · degree

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. ground — crushed
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bear — the animal
  5. degree — an amount
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. cold — an illness
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. ground — a position
  12. pass — a permit
  13. degree — temperature
  14. court — for sport
  15. bear — the animal
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. perch — the fish
  18. degree — from a university
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. ground — the earth
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. court — of a king
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. court — of law

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