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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: rush · safe · club · pitcher · fan · content · degree · season

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. club — for golf
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. club — for dancing
  6. content — happy
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. season — in sport
  14. season — of the year
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. club — a group
  19. degree — temperature
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. rush — hurry
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. content — the amount
  24. fan — a supporter

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