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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 120 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 · pitch · ball · game · sharp · pit · hand · bore

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  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. sharp — with an edge
  2. sharp — clever
  3. hand — help
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. bore — to drill
  6. degree — from a university
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. degree — an amount
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. pitch — completely
  12. pit — in a race
  13. ball — a dance
  14. pit — a hole
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. ball — a great time
  19. hand — in cards
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to tire
  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