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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: shower · degree · saw · clip · lean · can · mouse · deal

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. clip — for paper
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. degree — temperature
  7. saw — the tool
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. can — to be able to
  10. degree — from a university
  11. deal — to handle
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. clip — a video
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. degree — an amount
  17. shower — rain
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. clip — to cut
  20. lean — to bend
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. lean — thin
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. deal — an agreement

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