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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. club — for dancing
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — an amount
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. drill — a practice
  10. toast — bread
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. drill — the tool
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. court — of a king
  18. bat — the animal
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of law
  21. club — a group
  22. club — for golf
  23. drill — army training
  24. bulb — for light

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