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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. mug — a cup
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. mug — a face
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. fine — all right
  7. court — of a king
  8. mug — to rob
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. degree — an amount
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. cue — a hint
  13. row — to paddle
  14. foot — a measure
  15. court — of law
  16. degree — from a university
  17. cue — a signal
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. cue — for pool
  20. sharp — clever
  21. fine — high quality
  22. row — a line
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. degree — temperature

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