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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 · pitch · wake · bank · file · swing

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. bank — for money
  3. bank — for money
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. degree — an amount
  8. pitch — completely
  9. degree — from a university
  10. file — a line of people
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — in golf
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wake — a trail
  17. swing — music
  18. bank — of a river

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