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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: pit · spring · degree · squash · tear · perch · stick · staff

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. degree — temperature
  3. spring — of water
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — the fish
  6. degree — from a university
  7. spring — a coil
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. tear — to rip
  12. degree — an amount
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. spring — the season
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. pit — a hole
  17. squash — the sport
  18. pit — in a race
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — a stick
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. squash — to crush

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