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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: degree · cap · net · cell · court · present · leaves · straw

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. cap — of ice
  3. court — for sport
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. degree — an amount
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cell — a phone
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. net — for catching
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. cell — in biology
  13. degree — temperature
  14. present — a gift
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. court — of law
  17. court — of a king
  18. cap — a lid
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. present — there
  21. degree — from a university
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — after costs

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