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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 · deal · nail · cap · shower · land · game · mug

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. land — ground
  3. degree — temperature
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. mug — a face
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. shower — rain
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cap — a lid
  10. deal — to handle
  11. mug — a cup
  12. cap — a hat
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. game — a match
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. land — to come down
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. land — a country
  20. degree — from a university
  21. game — wild animals
  22. mug — to rob
  23. cap — of ice
  24. shower — to wash

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