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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: straw · mouse · tube · bank · field · cabinet · degree · sharp

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bank — for money
  4. field — for sport
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. bank — of a river
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bank — for money
  13. sharp — clever
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. field — farmland
  16. degree — from a university
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. degree — temperature
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. field — a subject
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. tube — a container
  24. tube — the underground

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