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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 116 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 · face · squash · bore · kick · deal · shower · tube

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. degree — an amount
  4. deal — to handle
  5. squash — the sport
  6. degree — from a university
  7. squash — to crush
  8. bore — to drill
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. face — to point toward
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. tube — the underground
  15. degree — temperature
  16. kick — in football
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. shower — rain
  20. face — part of the head
  21. face — to confront
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. shower — to wash
  24. tube — a container

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