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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. degree — temperature
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. roll — a list
  5. degree — an amount
  6. tube — the underground
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bass — the fish
  9. tube — a container
  10. clip — for paper
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bass — low music
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. kid — child
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. fine — high quality
  19. fine — all right
  20. clip — to cut
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. kid — to tease
  24. clip — a video

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