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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 116 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: degree · bank · track · fan · clip · can · object · safe

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. can — a tin
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. degree — an amount
  6. clip — to cut
  7. can — to be able to
  8. clip — for paper
  9. bank — for money
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. bank — for money
  12. object — an aim
  13. can — a tin
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. track — a path
  16. clip — a video
  17. bank — of a river
  18. track — to keep track
  19. track — a song
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. object — a thing

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