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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: content · racket · mate · fine · leaves · degree · pitch · swing

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. fine — all right
  3. mate — to breed
  4. swing — in golf
  5. content — happy
  6. degree — temperature
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. pitch — completely
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. swing — music
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. content — the amount
  14. fine — high quality
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. swing — to play on
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. mate — a friend
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. degree — an amount
  22. mate — a partner
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. content — videos and posts

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