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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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Word bank
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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 · lean · sharp · degree · rock · wound

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — clever
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. wound — an injury
  8. degree — from a university
  9. rock — a stone
  10. degree — an amount
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. lean — to bend
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. degree — temperature
  17. lean — thin
  18. wound — an injury

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