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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · stock · coach · cell · scale · mate · wound · sharp

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. degree — an amount
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. mate — a friend
  6. degree — temperature
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. mate — to breed
  9. cell — a phone
  10. sharp — clever
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. mate — a partner
  14. scale — in music
  15. wound — an injury
  16. scale — size or range
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. stock — shares
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stock — goods
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. degree — from a university
  24. cell — in a prison

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