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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wind · saw · ball · press · lash · bark · roll · degree

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. ball — a dance
  5. degree — from a university
  6. roll — a cake
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — to push
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. saw — the tool
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wind — moving air
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. roll — a list
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. ball — a great time
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bark — to shout
  24. degree — temperature

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