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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: wave · mark · degree · bat · pass · net · cabinet · fan

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. degree — from a university
  7. net — after costs
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. degree — an amount
  11. net — for catching
  12. mark — a trace
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. pass — a permit
  16. degree — temperature
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. net — in sport
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. mark — a grade
  24. mark — to pay attention

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