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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 120 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: tear · net · fall · degree · pass · fork

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. tear — from crying
  4. net — in sport
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. degree — from a university
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. pass — a permit
  10. tear — to rip
  11. fall — to drop
  12. net — after costs
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. degree — temperature
  16. tear — from crying
  17. fork — in a road
  18. degree — an amount

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