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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: sharp · mate · saw · racket · bat · wind · leaves · degree

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — moving air
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. degree — an amount
  9. mate — to breed
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. saw — the tool
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mate — a partner
  14. bat — the animal
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. mate — a friend
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. sharp — clever
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. degree — from a university
  23. saw — the tool
  24. sharp — exactly

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