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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 120 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: degree · track · club · field · rule · kick · bore · pitcher

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. degree — an amount
  3. field — for sport
  4. track — a song
  5. club — a group
  6. degree — from a university
  7. club — for golf
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. rule — a law
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. club — for dancing
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bore — to drill
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — a subject
  20. rule — government
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. track — a path
  24. bore — to tire

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