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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: mate · kid · current · degree · nail · deal · fall · pitch

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — to tease
  3. current — electric
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — completely
  8. degree — temperature
  9. current — of water
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. mate — to breed
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. degree — an amount
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. mate — a friend
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. mate — a partner
  20. current — happening now
  21. degree — from a university
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. fall — to drop
  24. deal — to handle

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