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

Word bank: racket · kid · staff · dip · degree · pound

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. staff — employees
  4. degree — an amount
  5. pound — a weight
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. degree — from a university
  8. dip — to sink
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — child
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. degree — temperature
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. staff — a stick
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. dip — a sauce

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