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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: straw · fine · pitcher · hand · degree · bank · dip · bowl

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. hand — help
  6. bank — for money
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. dip — to sink
  12. bank — for money
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. fine — high quality
  18. fine — all right
  19. degree — temperature
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — from a university
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. hand — in cards
  24. bank — of a river

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