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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. degree — an amount
  3. cell — in biology
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — temperature
  6. pop — soda
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. bank — for money
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. wound — an injury
  13. cell — a phone
  14. wound — an injury
  15. tube — a container
  16. tube — the underground
  17. kick — in football
  18. pop — music
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. foot — a measure
  21. bank — for money
  22. pop — to visit
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bank — of a river

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