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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wave · degree · ground · club · bank · firm

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. degree — an amount
  4. firm — decided
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. firm — a company
  7. degree — from a university
  8. firm — steady
  9. club — for golf
  10. bank — for money
  11. ground — a position
  12. club — for dancing
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. club — a group
  17. bank — for money
  18. degree — temperature

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