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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: fine · bank · pitch · present · spring · degree · kid · net

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. present — a gift
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bank — of a river
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bank — for money
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bank — for money
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. spring — the season
  15. kid — child
  16. spring — of water
  17. present — there
  18. present — the time now
  19. kid — to tease
  20. net — for catching
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. pitch — completely
  23. fine — all right
  24. degree — from a university

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