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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. bat — the animal
  5. field — farmland
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. court — of law
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. degree — from a university
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. season — in sport
  15. degree — an amount
  16. foot — a measure
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. court — for sport
  22. season — of the year
  23. stand — to bear
  24. court — of a king

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