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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. degree — temperature
  4. court — of a king
  5. wax — to grow
  6. game — a match
  7. rash — a series
  8. present — there
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. degree — an amount
  11. present — a gift
  12. tube — the underground
  13. ball — a great time
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. court — of law
  16. present — the time now
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. game — wild animals
  20. tube — a container
  21. ball — a dance
  22. degree — from a university
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. court — for sport

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