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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 116 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: cap · club · coach · saw · wave · stand · kick · degree

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. degree — from a university
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. club — for dancing
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. cap — a hat
  9. saw — the tool
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. saw — the tool
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. kick — in football
  15. cap — a lid
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. club — for golf
  19. cap — of ice
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. club — a group
  23. stand — to bear
  24. degree — temperature

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