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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: degree · capital · stem · squash · net · jam · swing · cue

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. degree — an amount
  3. net — for catching
  4. swing — in golf
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. cue — for pool
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. squash — to crush
  9. net — in sport
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. degree — from a university
  12. swing — music
  13. squash — the sport
  14. degree — temperature
  15. capital — a city
  16. stem — to come from
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cue — a signal
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. cue — a hint
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. net — after costs
  24. swing — to play on

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