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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  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. mouse — the animal
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. cold — an illness
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bank — for money
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. current — happening now
  10. cold — not warm
  11. current — electric
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. current — of water
  15. degree — temperature
  16. mark — a trace
  17. bank — for money
  18. bank — of a river
  19. degree — from a university
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. kid — child
  23. sharp — clever
  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