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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: degree · wound · kid · board · racket · wave · leaves · bowl

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. board — to get on
  8. degree — temperature
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. degree — an amount
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wound — an injury
  16. kid — child
  17. wound — an injury
  18. degree — from a university
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. board — a committee
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. board — a flat piece

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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