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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · perch · degree · chair · land · pass · foot · mug

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. land — a country
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. degree — an amount
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mine — for digging
  7. perch — the fish
  8. land — ground
  9. chair — a leader
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. pass — a permit
  13. land — to come down
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mug — a face
  16. degree — temperature
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. degree — from a university
  20. mug — a cup
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. foot — a measure
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. pass — to succeed

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