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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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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: degree · pass · club · cabinet · bat · race

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. race — humankind
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. bat — the animal
  7. club — for golf
  8. race — the arms race
  9. pass — a permit
  10. degree — from a university
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. race — a contest
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. degree — an amount
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. club — a group
  18. club — for dancing

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