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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 116 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: perch · file · spell · pit · coach · degree · snap · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. file — a document
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — from a university
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. spell — a short time
  8. degree — an amount
  9. pit — a hole
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to click
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. pit — in a race
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. spell — magic
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. perch — the fish
  21. spell — letters
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a line of people

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