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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: can · chip · snap · mate · degree · spring · band · mug

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. degree — from a university
  3. spring — of water
  4. snap — to click
  5. mate — to breed
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. mate — a friend
  9. degree — an amount
  10. can — a tin
  11. can — a tin
  12. mug — to rob
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. band — a music group
  15. degree — temperature
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — a coil
  18. mug — a face
  19. band — a ring
  20. chip — for betting
  21. can — to be able to
  22. mug — a cup
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — in a computer

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