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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 116 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: pass · bear · bank · wound · game · mate · degree · racket

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. bank — for money
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. wound — an injury
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pass — a permit
  8. mate — a partner
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bank — of a river
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bear — the animal
  14. game — wild animals
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. game — a match
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bank — for money
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a friend

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