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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bank — of a river
  4. bank — for money
  5. degree — temperature
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. rock — a stone
  8. pop — music
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. spell — magic
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — to visit
  13. plane — a tool
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. spell — letters
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. rock — music
  20. degree — an amount
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bank — for money
  24. degree — from a university

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