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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. degree — an amount
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — for sport
  6. game — wild animals
  7. drill — army training
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. court — of law
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. degree — temperature
  16. game — a match
  17. degree — from a university
  18. jam — to spread on bread

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