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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: fan · degree · rock · object · field · pound · wave · perch

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  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. degree — an amount
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. field — farmland
  4. object — an aim
  5. perch — the fish
  6. field — for sport
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. object — a thing
  9. degree — temperature
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. rock — music
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. field — a subject
  18. object — to protest
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. pound — a weight
  21. rock — a stone
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. pound — to hit hard
  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