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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 120 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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — for money
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. degree — temperature
  7. present — there
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. drill — a practice
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. present — the time now
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. sharp — clever
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. degree — an amount
  21. drill — army training
  22. present — a gift
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. drill — the tool

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