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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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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. ball — a dance
  4. last — finally
  5. dip — to sink
  6. last — final
  7. court — of law
  8. degree — temperature
  9. last — to go on
  10. court — of a king
  11. spell — letters
  12. degree — an amount
  13. court — for sport
  14. spell — a short time
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. ball — a great time
  18. spell — magic

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