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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. march — the month
  3. court — for sport
  4. bat — the animal
  5. court — of law
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. degree — from a university
  8. present — the time now
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — a phone
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. degree — temperature
  15. craft — boats
  16. craft — a skill
  17. court — of a king
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. present — there
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. march — the month
  23. present — a gift
  24. march — music

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