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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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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: club · wave · degree · stick · jam · file · perch · kick

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. perch — the fish
  3. degree — an amount
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. kick — in football
  6. file — a document
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. club — for golf
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. club — for dancing
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. degree — temperature
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. degree — from a university
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. file — a line of people
  24. club — a group

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