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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 120 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: straw · degree · content · deal · racket · cabinet · coach · mate

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. content — happy
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. mate — to breed
  6. mate — a friend
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. deal — to handle
  10. degree — an amount
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. mate — a partner
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. content — the amount
  18. degree — from a university
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. degree — temperature
  24. content — videos and posts

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