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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bound — tied together
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. fine — high quality
  8. degree — temperature
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. sharp — clever
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. court — of law
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. court — of a king
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — army training
  20. fine — all right
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. bound — obliged
  23. court — for sport
  24. bound — certain

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