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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 120 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: degree · capital · pound · straw · cabinet · fan · wave · kid

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. degree — temperature
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. kid — to tease
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. degree — an amount
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. capital — money
  22. degree — from a university
  23. pound — a weight
  24. kid — child

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