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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. swing — music
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. court — for sport
  6. degree — from a university
  7. drill — the tool
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. court — of a king
  11. game — a match
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. degree — an amount
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. drill — army training
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. game — wild animals
  23. degree — temperature
  24. court — of law

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