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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 120 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: degree · kid · bat · fall · hand · fine · ball · pass

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. fine — high quality
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. degree — an amount
  6. ball — a great time
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. hand — in cards
  12. kid — to tease
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fine — all right
  15. fall — to drop
  16. hand — help
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. kid — child
  22. degree — temperature
  23. ball — a dance
  24. pass — a permit

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