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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: content · mate · degree · perch · hand · press · rest · bay

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  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. content — happy
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. mate — to breed
  4. hand — in cards
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. hand — help
  7. rest — a break
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. press — newspapers
  11. perch — the fish
  12. press — to push
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. degree — temperature
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rest — what's left
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. degree — from a university
  19. mate — a friend
  20. press — a publisher
  21. mate — a partner
  22. content — the amount
  23. rest — what's left
  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