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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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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: craft · bulb · field · straw · chest · rest · perch · degree

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. rest — what's left
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. field — farmland
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. rest — a break
  8. chest — of your body
  9. degree — from a university
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bulb — for light
  12. field — a subject
  13. chest — a box
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bulb — for light
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. degree — temperature
  18. perch — the fish
  19. craft — a skill
  20. rest — what's left
  21. field — for sport
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. chest — of your body

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