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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.

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: degree · object · lean · perch · straw · file · patient · charge

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. object — to protest
  3. object — a thing
  4. file — a tool
  5. degree — from a university
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. lean — thin
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. perch — the fish
  12. file — a line of people
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. file — a document
  18. charge — a price
  19. charge — electricity
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. degree — temperature
  22. charge — in control
  23. object — an aim
  24. lean — to bend

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