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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: file · foot · pitch · degree · cold · bank · safe · bore

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. cold — an illness
  3. degree — an amount
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. degree — from a university
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — completely
  10. file — a document
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bore — to tire
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. bank — of a river
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bank — for money
  20. file — a line of people
  21. degree — temperature
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. file — a tool
  24. bank — for money

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