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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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Word bank
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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. charge — electricity
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rest — what's left
  5. degree — temperature
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. cell — in biology
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wound — an injury
  11. charge — in control
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. wound — an injury
  14. kick — in football
  15. charge — a price
  16. bank — of a river
  17. bank — for money
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cell — a phone
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. rest — what's left
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bank — for money
  24. degree — an amount

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