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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. sharp — clever
  4. degree — from a university
  5. spell — magic
  6. court — of a king
  7. rash — a series
  8. degree — temperature
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. court — of law
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spell — letters
  14. court — for sport
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. fine — all right
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. degree — an amount
  20. fine — high quality
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the sport
  24. hide — animal skin

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