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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. plane — a tool
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. degree — from a university
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bank — for money
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. face — to point toward
  12. tube — the underground
  13. hand — help
  14. bank — for money
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. bank — of a river
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. tube — a container
  19. degree — temperature
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — part of the head
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. wake — a trail

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