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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bowl · straw · net · bark · patient · leaves · degree · game

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. degree — from a university
  3. game — a match
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. net — for catching
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. game — wild animals
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. degree — temperature
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. degree — an amount
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — in sport
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bowl — a dish

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