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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  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. tube — the underground
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bank — of a river
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bank — for money
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cell — in biology
  11. plane — a tool
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. kick — in football
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bank — for money
  19. tube — a container
  20. degree — temperature
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. kick — a thrill
  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