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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: straw · board · object · degree · court · field · rock · perch

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. degree — an amount
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. field — a subject
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. field — farmland
  9. object — to protest
  10. rock — music
  11. court — of law
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. board — a committee
  14. object — a thing
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rock — a stone
  17. object — an aim
  18. perch — the fish
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. board — to get on
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — from a university

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