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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: rash · racket · kick · fine · net · sharp · degree · land

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rash — a series
  4. net — after costs
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. land — to come down
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. rash — hasty
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. kick — in football
  15. land — a country
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. fine — high quality
  18. land — ground
  19. sharp — clever
  20. fine — all right
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — an amount
  23. net — for catching
  24. degree — temperature

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