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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: degree · bulb · cap · file · deal · shower · band · stand

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  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. shower — a meteor shower
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. shower — rain
  5. degree — temperature
  6. file — a tool
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a ring
  9. cap — of ice
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. cap — a hat
  13. bulb — for light
  14. degree — an amount
  15. file — a line of people
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. degree — from a university
  18. stand — to bear
  19. bulb — for light
  20. shower — to wash
  21. file — a document
  22. cap — a lid
  23. stand — for spectators
  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