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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: mark · wake · sharp · net · ground · wound · degree · bowl

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. wound — an injury
  3. ground — crushed
  4. degree — an amount
  5. wake — a trail
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — clever
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wound — an injury
  12. net — for catching
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — a grade
  15. ground — a position
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. net — in sport
  19. degree — temperature
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. degree — from a university
  22. net — after costs
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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