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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bank — for money
  4. fine — all right
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. degree — from a university
  9. cap — of ice
  10. track — to keep track
  11. degree — temperature
  12. land — ground
  13. cap — a hat
  14. fine — high quality
  15. track — a song
  16. land — to come down
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bank — for money
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. track — a path
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. cap — a lid
  23. bank — of a river
  24. land — a country

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