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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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Word bank
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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: pop · mouse · degree · wind · cell · kid

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. cell — in biology
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — an amount
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — to tease
  9. pop — to visit
  10. wind — moving air
  11. kid — child
  12. degree — from a university
  13. pop — music
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. pop — soda
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. cell — a phone

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