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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.

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: hide · court · perch · trunk · net · degree · content · press

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — an amount
  3. press — a publisher
  4. net — for catching
  5. degree — from a university
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. net — in sport
  8. perch — the fish
  9. content — happy
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. press — to push
  14. court — of a king
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. net — after costs
  21. press — newspapers
  22. court — for sport
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. court — of law

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