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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: last · rule · degree · bat · can · net · field · bowl

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. degree — an amount
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — final
  9. can — a tin
  10. rule — government
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. field — a subject
  15. can — to be able to
  16. last — finally
  17. net — in sport
  18. field — for sport
  19. degree — temperature
  20. can — a tin
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. rule — a law
  23. degree — from a university
  24. field — farmland

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