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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 120 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 · fine · lean · bulb · mouse · wind · kid · pitch

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bulb — for light
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. kid — child
  7. fine — high quality
  8. lean — thin
  9. degree — from a university
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lean — to bend
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bulb — for light
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. wind — moving air
  20. degree — an amount
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. pitch — completely
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. bulb — of a plant

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