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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: row · saw · arm · clip · rest · degree · rash · bore

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. row — a line
  3. rash — a series
  4. rest — a break
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to drill
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. clip — a video
  9. degree — an amount
  10. rash — hasty
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rest — what's left
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. row — to paddle
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bore — to tire
  18. saw — the tool
  19. clip — for paper
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rest — what's left
  22. clip — to cut
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — a part of something

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