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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: stock · cue · present · ball · bore · degree · kid · sharp

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. bore — to tire
  3. sharp — clever
  4. present — a gift
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. ball — a great time
  7. present — the time now
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. stock — goods
  12. cue — a hint
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. stock — shares
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cue — a signal
  18. degree — from a university
  19. kid — child
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — temperature
  22. present — there
  23. bore — to drill
  24. stock — a soup base

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