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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.

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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: band · cell · can · degree · ruler · bank · row · bark

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  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. can — a tin
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. bank — for money
  4. can — to be able to
  5. degree — an amount
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. row — a line
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bank — of a river
  12. row — to paddle
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. can — a tin
  20. bank — for money
  21. band — a ring
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. degree — from a university
  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