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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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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: trunk · deal · straw · rash · kid · can · cap · degree

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. kid — to tease
  3. rash — hasty
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. degree — an amount
  7. can — a tin
  8. kid — child
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. deal — to handle
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. can — to be able to
  13. cap — a hat
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cap — of ice
  18. can — a tin
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. degree — from a university
  21. cap — a lid
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. rash — a series
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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