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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 120 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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. spell — magic
  3. kick — in football
  4. band — a ring
  5. kid — child
  6. degree — temperature
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. scale — size or range
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — an amount
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. stand — to bear
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a music group
  20. hand — help
  21. scale — in music
  22. spell — letters
  23. hand — in cards
  24. spell — a short 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