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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: wind · mouse · pitch · staff · degree · swing

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. staff — a stick
  5. swing — in golf
  6. wind — moving air
  7. staff — employees
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. staff — employees
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. pitch — completely
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — to play on
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mouse — the animal

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