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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: shower · hide · degree · racket · stick · craft · mark · jam

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. degree — from a university
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — an amount
  10. craft — a skill
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. mark — a grade
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. craft — boats
  19. shower — rain
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. shower — to wash
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. mark — a trace
  24. jam — in traffic

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