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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: ball · hand · drill · cold · bay · arm · degree · cabinet

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. hand — help
  4. degree — temperature
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. ball — a great time
  9. cold — an illness
  10. ball — a dance
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. drill — the tool
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. drill — a practice
  21. drill — army training
  22. degree — an amount
  23. hand — in cards
  24. arm — part of the body

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