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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rush · squash · kid · nail · file · land · bowl · degree

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  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. nail — for a hammer
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. file — a line of people
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. degree — temperature
  8. rush — hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. file — a document
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. kid — child
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. kid — to tease
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. land — ground
  18. squash — to crush
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. degree — an amount
  22. land — a country
  23. land — to come down
  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