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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.

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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: pitch · deal · degree · perch · chair · season · shower · fork

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  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. perch — for a bird
  2. shower — to wash
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. season — in sport
  5. fork — in a road
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. season — of the year
  8. shower — rain
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. perch — the fish
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. chair — a leader
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. degree — an amount
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. deal — to handle
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. degree — temperature
  23. pitch — completely
  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