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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 116 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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. degree — temperature
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. object — to protest
  5. bank — for money
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bank — for money
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. kid — child
  10. object — an aim
  11. sharp — clever
  12. degree — an amount
  13. kid — to tease
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. object — a thing
  16. tube — the underground
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. tube — a container
  21. wake — a trail
  22. degree — from a university
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bank — of a river

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