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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.

Make a worksheet

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: key · degree · wave · mine · row · sharp · straw · shower

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. row — a line
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. degree — temperature
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. key — in music
  10. degree — an amount
  11. row — to paddle
  12. key — for a lock
  13. sharp — clever
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. shower — to wash
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. degree — from a university
  21. key — the most important part
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — rain
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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