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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: cue · saw · land · ground · degree · net · spell · wave

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. saw — the tool
  3. spell — letters
  4. land — ground
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. spell — a short time
  7. land — to come down
  8. ground — crushed
  9. cue — a signal
  10. net — for catching
  11. ground — the earth
  12. degree — from a university
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. net — after costs
  15. cue — for pool
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. degree — temperature
  18. land — a country
  19. saw — the tool
  20. ground — a position
  21. cue — a hint
  22. degree — an amount
  23. spell — magic
  24. wave — with your hand

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