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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 116 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: prune · perch · hide · snap · ruler · degree · cap · row

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — an amount
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. snap — to click
  10. degree — temperature
  11. prune — to trim
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. cap — a hat
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — a line
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. prune — to trim
  21. cap — a lid
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. cap — of ice

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