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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: club · deal · fork · mate · season · swing · degree · fall

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. fall — to drop
  4. swing — music
  5. mate — a friend
  6. season — of the year
  7. club — for dancing
  8. mate — to breed
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. swing — to play on
  11. club — for golf
  12. fall — the season
  13. mate — a partner
  14. swing — in golf
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — from a university
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. fork — in a road
  20. season — in sport
  21. deal — to handle
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. club — a group
  24. fall — to drop

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