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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: squash · file · degree · pitcher · hide · fine · deal · trunk

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. degree — from a university
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. file — a document
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. degree — temperature
  8. file — a line of people
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. squash — the sport
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. fine — all right
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. degree — an amount
  19. deal — to handle
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. squash — to crush
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. file — a tool

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