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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. kid — to tease
  4. rest — a break
  5. bank — for money
  6. rest — what's left
  7. board — a committee
  8. rest — what's left
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. degree — an amount
  11. wind — moving air
  12. board — to get on
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bank — of a river
  16. degree — from a university
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. clip — for paper
  21. kid — child
  22. bank — for money
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — a sauce

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