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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: sharp · degree · perch · present · can · field · rule · game

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. can — a tin
  3. field — for sport
  4. degree — temperature
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. field — a subject
  7. game — wild animals
  8. can — to be able to
  9. present — a gift
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. degree — an amount
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. present — there
  14. present — the time now
  15. field — farmland
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rule — a law
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. perch — the fish
  20. degree — from a university
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. can — a tin
  23. game — a match
  24. rule — government

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