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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: ball · object · roll · mouse · degree · leaves · nail · stand

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. ball — a great time
  3. ball — a dance
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. object — a thing
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. degree — temperature
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. degree — an amount
  13. stand — to bear
  14. degree — from a university
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. roll — a list
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. object — an aim
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. roll — a cake
  24. leaves — to go away

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