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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: lie · degree · rash · row · cell · perch · swing · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. swing — music
  3. degree — temperature
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. swing — to play on
  6. row — a line
  7. season — of the year
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. degree — an amount
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. swing — in golf
  13. lie — to recline
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. degree — from a university
  16. rash — hasty
  17. cell — in biology
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. perch — the fish
  21. rash — a series
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. cell — a phone
  24. season — in sport

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