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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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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: root · bat · firm · mouse · bound · cold · straw · degree

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — temperature
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bat — the animal
  9. firm — steady
  10. bound — obliged
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. firm — decided
  14. bound — certain
  15. root — of a word
  16. root — the cause
  17. cold — not warm
  18. firm — a company
  19. cold — an illness
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bound — tied together
  22. root — of a plant
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. degree — an amount

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