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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: bore · board · roll · mine · dip · hand · degree · mate

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. degree — temperature
  4. board — to get on
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mine — for digging
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. degree — an amount
  11. hand — in cards
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. bore — to tire
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bore — to drill
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. roll — a list
  20. roll — a cake
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. degree — from a university
  23. mate — a friend
  24. board — a committee

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