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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: fork · race · pop · degree · mug · can · wind · fine

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. can — a tin
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mug — a face
  6. fine — all right
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. degree — an amount
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. race — a contest
  12. pop — to visit
  13. degree — from a university
  14. pop — music
  15. mug — to rob
  16. race — the arms race
  17. pop — soda
  18. fork — in a road
  19. can — a tin
  20. degree — temperature
  21. can — to be able to
  22. fine — high quality
  23. race — humankind
  24. mug — a cup

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