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

Word bank: degree · vault · pound · band · bat · stick

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. degree — temperature
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. pound — a weight
  11. vault — a safe
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. bat — the animal
  14. degree — from a university
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. degree — an amount
  18. band — a ring

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