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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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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: bowl · stick · lash · hand · row · cabinet · pound · degree

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. row — to paddle
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. pound — a weight
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. hand — in cards
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. row — a line
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. hand — help
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. degree — an amount
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. cabinet — ministers

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