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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: deal · degree · tear · wake · hide · safe · roll · hand

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. tear — from crying
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. degree — temperature
  11. hand — help
  12. wake — a trail
  13. hand — in cards
  14. roll — a cake
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. tear — from crying
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. degree — from a university
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. roll — a list
  23. tear — to rip
  24. deal — to handle

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