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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 120 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: cell · press · ruler · degree · perch · scale · squash · content

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. press — a publisher
  5. scale — in music
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. squash — to crush
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. degree — an amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — happy
  12. cell — in biology
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. degree — from a university
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — a phone
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. degree — temperature
  19. content — the amount
  20. scale — size or range
  21. squash — the sport
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. press — newspapers
  24. perch — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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