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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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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: game · swing · racket · mate · degree · fork · cap · pound

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. fork — in a road
  3. degree — an amount
  4. game — a match
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. degree — temperature
  8. mate — a partner
  9. game — wild animals
  10. swing — music
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. cap — a lid
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. swing — in golf
  16. mate — a friend
  17. cap — of ice
  18. swing — to play on
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. pound — a weight
  21. degree — from a university
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. cap — a hat
  24. game — a kind of play

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