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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: rush · bat · hide · swing · cap · can · row · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. row — a line
  3. swing — to play on
  4. degree — temperature
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. swing — music
  8. can — a tin
  9. cap — a hat
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bat — the animal
  17. row — to paddle
  18. degree — an amount
  19. swing — in golf
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cap — a lid
  24. rush — hurry

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