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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: craft · band · object · race · perch · arm · degree · wound

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. craft — boats
  5. perch — the fish
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. band — a ring
  9. degree — an amount
  10. degree — temperature
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. wound — an injury
  13. object — to protest
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. race — humankind
  16. degree — from a university
  17. object — an aim
  18. race — the arms race
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. craft — a skill
  21. object — a thing
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. race — a contest
  24. band — a music group

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