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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. game — wild animals
  3. net — for catching
  4. wind — moving air
  5. staff — employees
  6. degree — temperature
  7. rock — a stone
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. net — in sport
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. fine — all right
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. degree — from a university
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. degree — an amount
  18. rock — music
  19. net — after costs
  20. game — a match
  21. staff — a stick
  22. fine — high quality
  23. wind — moving air
  24. staff — employees

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