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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: mug · straw · net · saw · scale · toast · degree · rush

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. mug — a cup
  3. rush — hurry
  4. net — for catching
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. saw — the tool
  7. scale — in music
  8. degree — an amount
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. net — in sport
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. mug — a face
  13. saw — the tool
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. scale — size or range
  17. degree — from a university
  18. mug — to rob
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. degree — temperature
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. toast — bread

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