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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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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. saw — the tool
  3. net — for catching
  4. ball — a great time
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. ball — a dance
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. net — in sport
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. saw — the tool
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. degree — an amount
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — a friend
  18. press — a publisher
  19. press — to push
  20. pass — a permit
  21. mate — to breed
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. press — newspapers
  24. degree — from a university

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