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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: mate · pitcher · stem · degree · swing · roll · present · kick

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. degree — from a university
  3. present — a gift
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. present — there
  7. degree — temperature
  8. mate — a partner
  9. swing — to play on
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — to come from
  13. roll — a list
  14. present — the time now
  15. swing — music
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. roll — a cake
  19. mate — to breed
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. swing — in golf
  22. mate — a friend
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. degree — an amount

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