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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: coach · mug · saw · spell · rush · net · degree · snap

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. net — after costs
  3. mug — a cup
  4. net — for catching
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. degree — temperature
  9. mug — a face
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. mug — to rob
  16. rush — hurry
  17. snap — to click
  18. degree — from a university
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — a short time
  21. net — in sport
  22. spell — magic
  23. saw — the tool
  24. degree — an amount

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