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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a dance
  3. degree — temperature
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. scale — size or range
  6. ball — a great time
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. rule — government
  10. cell — in biology
  11. drill — the tool
  12. scale — in music
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. drill — army training
  15. rule — a law
  16. degree — an amount
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. face — part of the head
  19. degree — from a university
  20. drill — a practice
  21. face — to confront
  22. cell — a phone
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. face — to point toward

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