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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 116 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: mine · net · degree · stick · kid · bowl · game · lie

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. net — after costs
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. degree — temperature
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. game — a match
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. degree — from a university
  10. degree — an amount
  11. game — wild animals
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. net — in sport
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. kid — child
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. kid — to tease
  22. lie — to recline
  23. mine — for digging
  24. net — for catching

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