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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. band — a music group
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. cap — a hat
  6. degree — an amount
  7. track — a song
  8. track — a path
  9. degree — temperature
  10. cap — a lid
  11. track — to keep track
  12. cap — of ice
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — for money
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. bank — of a river
  20. band — a ring
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. wind — moving air
  23. vault — a safe
  24. bowl — a football final

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