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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: hand · degree · bass · fall · mark · mate · perch · charge

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. charge — electricity
  3. mark — a trace
  4. mate — to breed
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mark — a grade
  7. fall — to drop
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — from a university
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mate — a friend
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — help
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bass — low music
  21. charge — a price
  22. fall — the season
  23. charge — in control
  24. bass — the fish

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