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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. ball — a great time
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. bank — of a river
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. can — to be able to
  8. sharp — clever
  9. can — a tin
  10. mug — a cup
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. spring — the season
  13. bank — for money
  14. can — a tin
  15. spring — of water
  16. mug — to rob
  17. ball — a dance
  18. spring — a coil
  19. degree — temperature
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mug — a face
  22. bank — for money
  23. degree — from a university
  24. ball — a round shape

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