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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 120 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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. degree — temperature
  3. chair — a leader
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. court — of a king
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. rash — a series
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. court — for sport
  17. tube — a container
  18. rash — hasty
  19. degree — an amount
  20. degree — from a university
  21. tube — the underground
  22. snap — to click
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — a young animal

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