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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. court — of law
  5. field — farmland
  6. court — of a king
  7. last — finally
  8. degree — an amount
  9. field — a subject
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. field — for sport
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bass — low music
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. court — for sport
  19. degree — temperature
  20. last — to go on
  21. degree — from a university
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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