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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  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. bank — for money
  2. degree — from a university
  3. key — for a lock
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. bat — the animal
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. game — a match
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. degree — temperature
  10. key — the most important part
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mark — a grade
  13. degree — an amount
  14. pop — music
  15. game — wild animals
  16. key — in music
  17. pop — to visit
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bank — for money
  23. pop — soda
  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