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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: pit · chair · track · degree · stand · fork · net · can

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. degree — temperature
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. track — to keep track
  5. can — a tin
  6. chair — a leader
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fork — in a road
  9. net — after costs
  10. track — a path
  11. degree — from a university
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. pit — a hole
  14. stand — to bear
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. can — to be able to
  17. can — a tin
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. pit — in a race
  20. net — for catching
  21. track — a song
  22. degree — an amount
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. net — in sport

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