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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 120 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: root · saw · nail · swing · march · game · perch · degree

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. degree — temperature
  3. root — of a word
  4. degree — an amount
  5. march — the month
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. degree — from a university
  8. root — of a plant
  9. swing — to play on
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. root — the cause
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. game — a match
  14. perch — the fish
  15. saw — the tool
  16. swing — in golf
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. march — the month
  21. swing — music
  22. game — wild animals
  23. march — music
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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