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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: file · field · mouse · stand · degree · perch · jam · foot

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. stand — to bear
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. foot — a measure
  7. file — a document
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — a subject
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. degree — from a university
  15. file — a tool
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. file — a line of people
  18. degree — temperature
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. field — farmland
  21. perch — the fish
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. degree — an amount

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