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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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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: rock · perch · degree · trunk · mouse · field · pound · cabinet

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. field — for sport
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. perch — the fish
  5. pound — a weight
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. degree — from a university
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. field — farmland
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. field — a subject
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rock — a stone
  19. degree — an amount
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. degree — temperature
  24. mouse — the animal

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