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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: track · row · rash · bass · net · band · snap · degree

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. net — in sport
  3. track — a path
  4. net — after costs
  5. band — a ring
  6. bass — low music
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. rash — hasty
  13. track — a song
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — an amount
  17. rash — a series
  18. band — a music group
  19. degree — from a university
  20. net — for catching
  21. bass — the fish
  22. track — to keep track
  23. row — to paddle
  24. snap — to click

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