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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: game · mark · degree · mate · perch · tear · roll · mug

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. mug — a cup
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mug — to rob
  6. degree — from a university
  7. roll — a list
  8. degree — temperature
  9. mate — to breed
  10. tear — from crying
  11. game — wild animals
  12. mate — a friend
  13. mark — a trace
  14. perch — the fish
  15. tear — to rip
  16. mark — a grade
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. degree — an amount
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mug — a face
  24. game — a match

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