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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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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: kick · cold · bank · fork · cap · mug · squash · degree

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. cap — a hat
  3. bank — for money
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. mug — a cup
  7. degree — an amount
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bank — of a river
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. mug — a face
  12. cap — of ice
  13. cap — a lid
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. squash — the sport
  16. cold — not warm
  17. kick — in football
  18. degree — from a university
  19. bank — for money
  20. degree — temperature
  21. squash — to crush
  22. mug — to rob
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. fork — a garden 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