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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: present · degree · row · pitch · craft · pass

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. degree — from a university
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. degree — temperature
  6. row — to paddle
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. present — there
  10. pass — a permit
  11. degree — an amount
  12. present — the time now
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. row — a line
  15. craft — boats
  16. pitch — completely
  17. craft — a skill
  18. pass — to spend time

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