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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: content · bank · perch · degree · mate · mug · scale · kid

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. degree — an amount
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bank — for money
  6. mug — a cup
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. scale — size or range
  9. mug — to rob
  10. bank — of a river
  11. content — the amount
  12. mate — a friend
  13. content — happy
  14. perch — the fish
  15. mate — a partner
  16. degree — from a university
  17. kid — child
  18. kid — to tease
  19. scale — in music
  20. bank — for money
  21. degree — temperature
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. mug — a face
  24. perch — for a bird

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