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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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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: pound · ball · kick · cue · degree · race · row · tear

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a hint
  5. race — the arms race
  6. tear — from crying
  7. degree — from a university
  8. cue — a signal
  9. kick — in football
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. degree — temperature
  13. ball — a dance
  14. tear — to rip
  15. row — to paddle
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. row — a line
  19. ball — a great time
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. degree — an amount

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