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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: net · degree · mate · chair · kick · firm

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. chair — a leader
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. degree — temperature
  5. firm — steady
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — after costs
  10. firm — a company
  11. degree — from a university
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. mate — to breed
  14. net — for catching
  15. firm — decided
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mate — a friend
  18. kick — in football

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