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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: cabinet · kick · stock · band · chip · mark · racket · degree

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — an amount
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a ring
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. stock — goods
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. kick — in football
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. chip — for betting
  17. mark — a grade
  18. degree — temperature
  19. chip — to eat
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. stock — shares
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. mark — a trace
  24. racket — for tennis

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