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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
468
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: perch · degree · march · wake · wound · current · ball · fall

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. wake — a trail
  3. march — music
  4. degree — temperature
  5. fall — to drop
  6. march — the month
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fall — to drop
  13. perch — the fish
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. current — of water
  17. march — the month
  18. fall — the season
  19. degree — from a university
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a great time
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wound — an injury

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