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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. net — in sport
  4. rash — hasty
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. degree — temperature
  11. net — for catching
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. degree — an amount
  14. rash — a series
  15. net — after costs
  16. degree — from a university
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. rash — on the skin

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