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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: roll · perch · net · game · date · degree · lie · swing

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. date — the fruit
  3. game — wild animals
  4. net — in sport
  5. game — a match
  6. degree — an amount
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. roll — a list
  9. swing — music
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. roll — a cake
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. net — for catching
  15. perch — the fish
  16. degree — from a university
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. net — after costs
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. degree — temperature
  21. lie — to recline
  22. swing — to play on
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. swing — in golf

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