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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: game · perch · degree · branch · nail · kick · fork · snap

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. branch — a division
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. perch — the fish
  5. degree — an amount
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. kick — in football
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. game — wild animals
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. game — a match
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. degree — from a university
  20. fork — in a road
  21. degree — temperature
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. snap — to click

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