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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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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 · net · rest · cell · lie · wind · mate · pass

  1. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. cell — a phone
  3. degree — an amount
  4. degree — temperature
  5. net — for catching
  6. cell — in biology
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. mate — a friend
  9. lie — to recline
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. mate — to breed
  13. wind — moving air
  14. degree — from a university
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wind — moving air
  18. net — in sport
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. net — after costs
  21. rest — what's left
  22. mate — a partner
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. pass — a permit

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