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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. chip — for betting
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. lean — thin
  10. degree — temperature
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a ring
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bank — for money
  15. bank — for money
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. chip — to eat
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. kid — child
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. band — a music group
  22. degree — from a university
  23. bank — of a river
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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