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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. degree — from a university
  3. clip — a video
  4. club — a group
  5. bore — to tire
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mate — a friend
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. clip — for paper
  12. bank — for money
  13. spell — a short time
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. spell — letters
  17. bore — to drill
  18. mate — to breed
  19. bank — for money
  20. club — for golf
  21. club — for dancing
  22. degree — an amount
  23. spell — magic
  24. patient — a sick person

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