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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
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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: perch · key · patient · calf · degree · lie · clip · date

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. lie — to recline
  3. degree — from a university
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. degree — an amount
  7. key — for a lock
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. clip — to cut
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. key — the most important part
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. perch — the fish
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. clip — a video
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. clip — for paper
  20. date — the fruit
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. degree — temperature
  24. key — in music

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