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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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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: mouse · fork · pit · race · mine · perch · degree · key

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — from a university
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — the fish
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. key — for a lock
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. pit — in a race
  15. fork — in a road
  16. degree — temperature
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. key — in music
  19. key — the most important part
  20. race — a contest
  21. race — the arms race
  22. race — humankind
  23. pit — a hole
  24. mine — for digging

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