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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. rash — hasty
  3. row — to paddle
  4. court — of a king
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — a country
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. can — to be able to
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — clever
  12. rash — a series
  13. can — a tin
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — temperature
  17. court — of law
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. court — for sport
  20. land — ground
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. row — a line
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. sharp — with an edge

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