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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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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 · bank · nail · snap · cold · kick · safe · fall

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — of a river
  6. snap — to click
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. kick — in football
  11. degree — from a university
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bank — for money
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. degree — an amount
  18. degree — temperature
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cold — an illness
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. fall — the season

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