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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 116 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 water is too ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. court — of law
  3. degree — from a university
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — the time now
  6. can — to be able to
  7. cold — an illness
  8. degree — temperature
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. bulb — for light
  11. can — a tin
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. court — for sport
  14. field — for sport
  15. degree — an amount
  16. firm — decided
  17. present — there
  18. firm — a company
  19. can — a tin
  20. firm — steady
  21. field — a subject
  22. court — of a king
  23. bulb — for light
  24. field — farmland

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