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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 116 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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — child
  4. pop — to visit
  5. degree — from a university
  6. pop — music
  7. saw — the tool
  8. degree — temperature
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. capital — money
  12. bank — for money
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. bank — of a river
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. degree — an amount
  17. capital — a city
  18. pop — soda
  19. ball — a dance
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bank — for money
  23. dip — to sink
  24. ball — a great time

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