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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: scale · nail · clip · degree · perch · ground · bowl · face

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. degree — an amount
  3. perch — the fish
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. ground — crushed
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. scale — size or range
  8. ground — the earth
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. scale — in music
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — to point toward
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. face — part of the head
  21. degree — temperature
  22. ground — a position
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. degree — from a university

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