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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: bowl · press · degree · racket · bat · rule · mate · land

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  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. rule — a law
  2. mate — a partner
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. mate — to breed
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. press — a publisher
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. degree — from a university
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. degree — an amount
  19. land — ground
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — a country
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — government
  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