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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: season · bank · perch · swing · degree · content · lie · date

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. lie — to recline
  4. perch — the fish
  5. bank — for money
  6. date — the fruit
  7. bank — of a river
  8. content — happy
  9. swing — in golf
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bank — for money
  12. degree — an amount
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. content — the amount
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. swing — music
  19. degree — from a university
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. swing — to play on
  23. season — in sport
  24. degree — temperature

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