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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: safe · nail · degree · pitcher · game · cabinet · mate · wind

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. mate — a partner
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. mate — to breed
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. mate — a friend
  11. wind — moving air
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. game — wild animals
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. game — a match
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. degree — temperature

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