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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: sharp · degree · stock · key · rest · race · kid · land

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. degree — temperature
  3. rest — what's left
  4. key — the most important part
  5. sharp — clever
  6. key — for a lock
  7. kid — to tease
  8. kid — child
  9. land — a country
  10. degree — an amount
  11. rest — what's left
  12. stock — shares
  13. land — ground
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — the arms race
  19. key — in music
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. degree — from a university
  22. rest — a break
  23. land — to come down
  24. stock — goods

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