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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — temperature
  3. degree — an amount
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. staff — employees
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. wake — a trail
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. file — a document
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. file — a line of people
  19. snap — to click
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. branch — a division
  24. file — a tool

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