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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. 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 — temperature
  2. craft — a skill
  3. degree — from a university
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. degree — an amount
  6. roll — a list
  7. craft — boats
  8. court — of law
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. court — for sport
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. spell — a short time
  14. fall — the season
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — in sport
  17. spell — letters
  18. season — of the year
  19. fall — to drop
  20. court — of a king
  21. fall — to drop
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. roll — a cake
  24. 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