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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: track · chip · present · net · capital · fork · racket · degree

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. fork — in a road
  3. net — in sport
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — from a university
  6. capital — a city
  7. track — to keep track
  8. present — there
  9. track — a song
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. capital — money
  15. track — a path
  16. chip — for betting
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — a gift
  20. net — for catching
  21. degree — an amount
  22. chip — to eat
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. fork — to eat with

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