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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: rule · mug · degree · land · net · lie · race · stock

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. net — after costs
  3. race — the arms race
  4. mug — to rob
  5. net — in sport
  6. degree — an amount
  7. net — for catching
  8. land — a country
  9. stock — shares
  10. rule — a law
  11. mug — a cup
  12. land — to come down
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. race — a contest
  15. stock — goods
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. mug — a face
  18. land — ground
  19. degree — from a university
  20. race — humankind
  21. lie — to recline
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. degree — temperature
  24. rule — government

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