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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: jam · degree · bark · chair · firm · rash · perch · racket

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. firm — decided
  4. firm — steady
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. rash — hasty
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. chair — a leader
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bark — to shout
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. firm — a company
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — from a university
  24. rash — a series

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